LIFE STORIES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 



WILLIAM PENN 



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LIFE STORIES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 



WILLIAM PENN 



LIFE STORIES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 

Translated from the German by 
GEORGE P. UPTON 



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M PENN 



Life Stories for Young People 



WILLIAM PENN 

Translated from the German of 
Hugo Oertel 



BY 

GEORGE P. UPTON 

Translator of " Memories^''* "Immenseey^ etc. 
WITH FOUR ILLUSTRATIONS 




CHICAGO 

A. C. McCLURG ^ CO. 
1911 



/- /5 4 
.Z 



Copyright 

A. C. McClurg & Co. 

1911 

Published September, 191 1 



- • 



THE • PLIMPTON • PRESS 

[ W D- o] 
NORWOOD • MASS • U • S • A 



CLA295752 
V 



THE life of William Penn is one which can- 
not be too closely studied by American 
youth, and the German author of this little 
volume has told its story in most attractive 
style. Not one of the early settlers of the United 
States had loftier purpose in view, more exalted ambi- 
tion, or nobler character. The brotherhood of man 
was his guiding principle, and in seeking to carry out 
his purpose he displayed resolute courage, inflexible 
honesty, and the highest, noblest, and most beauti- 
ful traits of character. He encountered numerous 
obstacles in his great mission — imprisonment and 
persecution at home, slanders and calumnies of his 
enemies, intrigues of those who were envious of his 
success, domestic sorrows, and at last, and most 
deplorable of all, the ingratitude of the colonists as 
the settlement grew, and in some cases their enmity. 
It is a shining example of his lofty character and fair 
dealing that the Indians, who were always jealous of 
white men and suspicious of their designs, remained 
his stanch friends to the end, for he never broke 
faith with them. His closing days were sad ones, 
and he died in comparative seclusion, but his name 
will always be preserved by that of the great com- 

[v] 



TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE 

monwealth which bears it and his principles by the 
name of the metropoUs which signifies them. This 
world would be a better one if there were more 
William Penns in it. 

G. P. U. 
Chicago, July, 191 1 



[vi] 



Contents? 



Chapter Page 

I William Penn's Father — Childhood of Penn — Ex- 
pulsion FROM Oxford for his Religious Views — 
Travels on the Continent ii 

II The Plague and its Results — Penn as a Soldier — 
His Religious Struggle — Becomes a Quaker — Im- 
prisonment FOR Attending Meetings — Death of 
his Father 24 

III Penn's Third Imprisonment — His Happy Marriage — 

Fresh Persecutions — Visits to Germany — Quaker 
Emigration •?6 

IV The Popish Plot — Settlement of Virginia — The 

Royal Cession to Penn — Christening of Pennsyl- 
vania — Outlines of Penn's Constitution ... 48 

V Description of Penn's Domain — Negotiations with 
the Indians by Penn's Agent — Death of Penn's 
Mother — Final Instructions to his Family — 
Departure of the "Welcome" 60 

VI Penn's Arrival — The Founding of Philadelphia — 
First General Assembly — Building of the "Blue 
Anchor" — The First School and Printing Press . 72 

VII The Indian Conference — Signing of the Treaty — 
Penn Returns to England to Defend his Rights 
against Lord Baltimore — Accession of James 
the Second — His Dethronement and Accession of 
William the Third 84 



[vii] 



CONTENTS 



Chapter Page 

VIII Penn Tried for Treason and Acquitted — Withdrawal 
OF Penn's Charter — Death of his Wife and Son — 
Second Marriage — Journey to America — Penn's 
Home — Attempts to Correct Abuses — Returns to 
England and Encounters Fresh Dangers — Penn in 
THE Debtors' Prison — Ingratitude of the Colonists 96 

IX Death of his Dissolute Son William — Penn's Last 

Illness AND Mental Decline — His Death and Will . 109 

Appendix 113 



[viii] 



3JUu0trations 



Page 



William Penn Frontispiece ^ 

The Duel 22^ 

Penn and the Indians 82 v 

The Conference 84^^ 



[ix] 



Wiilliam i^enn 



Chapter I 

William PewrCs Father — Childhood of Penn — Expulsion 
from Oxford for his Religious Views — Travels on 
the Continent 

WILLIAM PENN was descended from an 
old English family which, as early as the 
beginning of the fifteenth century, had 
settled in the county of Buckinghamshire 
in the southern part of England, and of which a 
branch seems later to have moved to the neighbor- 
ing county of Wiltshire, for in a church in the town 
of Mintye there is a tablet recording the death of 
a William Penn in 1591. It was a grandson and 
namesake of this William Penn, and the father of our 
hero, however, who first made the family name dis- 
tinguished. Brought up as a sailor by his father, 
the captain of a merchantman, with whom he visited 
not only the principal ports of Spain and Portugal, 
but also the distant shores of Asia Minor, he after- 
ward entered the service of the government and so 
distinguished himself that in his twentieth year he 

[II] 



WILLIAM PENN 



was made a captain in the royal navy. In 1643 he 
married Margaret Jasper, the clever and beautiful 
daughter of a Rotterdam merchant, and from this 
time his sole ambition was to make a name for himself 
and elevate his family to a rank they had not hitherto 
enjoyed. In this he succeeded, partly by policy, but 
also unquestionably by natural ability; for although 
the name of Penn is scarcely enrolled among England's 
greatest naval heroes, yet at the early age of twenty- 
three he had been made a rear-admiral, and two years 
later was advanced to the rank of vice-admiral — 
this too at a time when advancement in the English 
navy could only be obtained by real merit and 
valuable service. 

Penn's father was also shrewd enough to take 
advantage of circumstances and turn them to his 
profit. Although at heart a royalist, he did not 
scruple to go over to the revolutionists when it be- 
came evident that the monarchy must succumb to 
the power of the justly incensed people and Parlia- 
ment; and when the head of Charles the First had 
fallen under the executioner's axe and Oliver Crom- 
well had seized the reins of government. Admiral 
Penn was prompt to offer his homage. Cromwell 
on his part may have had some justifiable doubts as 
to the sincerity of this allegiance, but knowing Penn 
to be an ambitious man of the world, he felt reason- 
ably sure of winning him over completely to the side 
of the Commonwealth by consulting his interests. 
He had need of such men just then, for the alliance 

[12] ■ ■ 



WILLIAM PENN'S FATHER 

between England and Holland, which he was en- 
deavoring to bring about, had just been frustrated 
by the passage by Parliament of the Navigation Act 
of 165 1, requiring that foreign merchandise should 
be brought to England on English vessels only. 
This was a direct blow at the flourishing trade 
hitherto carried on by the Dutch with English ports, 
and a war with Holland was inevitable. As this 
must of necessity be a naval war, Cromwell was 
quite ready to accept the services of so able and 
experienced an officer as William Penn. The young 
admiral fully justified the Protector's confidence, for 
it was largely owing to his valor that the war, during 
which ten great naval battles were fought, ended in 
complete victory for the English. 

Scarcely less distinguished were his services in the 
subsequent war with Spain, when he was given the 
task of destroying that country's sovereignty in 
the West Indies. He conquered the island of Jamaica, 
which was added to England's possessions, but was 
unable to retrieve an unsuccessful attempt of the 
land forces assisting him to capture the neighboring 
island of Hispaniola. He had been shrewd enough 
to make terms with Cromwell before sailing for the 
West Indies. In compensation for the damages 
inflicted on his Irish property during the civil war 
he was granted an indemnity, besides the promise of 
a valuable estate in Ireland, and the assurance of 
protection for his family during his absence. It was 
well for Penn that he did so, for on his return he was 

[13] 



WILLIAM PENN 



summarily deprived of his office and cast into prison 
— ostensibly for his failure to conquer Hispaniola. 
The real reason, however, for this action on the part 
of Cromwell was doubtless due to his knowledge of 
certain double dealing on the part of Penn, who, 
shrewdly foreseeing that the English Commonwealth 
was destined to be short-lived and that on the death 
of Cromwell the son of the murdered King would 
doubtless be restored to the throne, had secretly 
entered into communication with this prince, then 
living at Cologne on the Rhine, and placed at his 
disposition the entire fleet under his command. 
The offer had been declined, it is true, Charles at 
that time being unable to avail himself of it, but it 
had reached the ears of Cromwell, who took this 
means of punishing the admiral's disloyalty. 

That our hero should have been the child of such 
a father proves the fallacy of the saying, "The apple 
never falls far from the tree." His mother, fortu- 
nately, was of a very different and far nobler stamp. 
She seems to have felt no regret at her son's religious 
turn of mind, for later, when the father, enraged at 
his association with the despised Quakers, turned 
him out of doors, she secretly sympathized with the 
outcast and supplied him with money. 

This son, our William Penn, was born in London 
on the fourteenth of October, 1644, as his father was 
floating down the Thames in the battleship of which 
he had just been placed in command. For his early 
education he was indebted entirely to his mother, 

[14] 



WILLIAM PENN'S FATHER 

his father's profession keeping him away from home 
most of the time. From what is known of her, this 
must have been of a kind firmly to implant in the 
child's heart the seeds of piety, for such a develop- 
ment of spirituality can only be ascribed to impres- 
sions received in childhood. William was only eleven 
at the time of his father's disgrace, but old enough 
to understand and share his mother's distress at 
the misfortune which fell like a dark shadow across 
his youthful gayety. Even then the boy may have 
realized how little real happiness is to be found in 
a worldly career, and how poor are they whose whole 
thoughts are centred on the things of this life. 

The admiral's imprisonment did not last long, 
however. A petition for pardon having been sent 
to the Protector, he was released and retired with 
his family to bury his blighted ambitions on the Irish 
estate near Cork which he had received as a reward 
for his achievements in the war with Holland. Two 
more children had been born to them in the mean- 
time, a daughter, Margaret, and a second son, who 
was named Richard. Here, amid the pleasures and 
occupations of a country life to which he devoted 
himself with the greatest zest and enjoyment, young 
William grew into a slender but stalwart youth. 
When it became time to consider his higher education, 
for which there were no suitable opportunities at 
home, it was decided to send him to Oxford — a plan 
which was deferred for a time, however, owing to an 
event which was of more concern to Admiral Penn 

[IS] 



WILLIAM PENN 



than his son's education, since it opened fresh fields 
for his ambition. 

This was the death of OHver Cromwell on Sep- 
tember 3, 1658. The news revived Penn's still cher- 
ished plans for assisting in the restoration of Charles 
the Second, thereby laying the foundation of a 
new and brilliant career at the court of the young 
King, whose favor he had already propitiated by 
his offer of the fleet. These schemes he did not dare 
to put into immediate execution for fear of involving 
himself in fresh troubles, the parliamentary party still 
being in power and Cromwell's son Richard chosen 
as his successor. But no sooner had the latter, 
realizing his inability to guide affairs with his father's 
strong hand, resigned the honor conferred upon him, 
no sooner was it announced that Parliament had 
received a message from Charles the Second and was 
favorably inclined toward his restoration to the 
throne, than the aspiring admiral lost not a moment 
in hastening over to Holland to be among the first 
to offer homage to the new King. 

The knighthood which he received from that 
grateful monarch served only as a spur to still greater 
zeal in his interests, to which he devoted himself with 
such success that he not only won over the navy to 
the royal cause by his influence with its officers, but 
having accomplished his election to Parliament, was 
thus able to assist in the decision to recall the exiled 
sovereign. Again he was among the first to carry 
this news to Holland, thereby establishing himself 

[16] 



WILLIAM PENN'S FATHER 

still more firmly in the King's favor. Not till these 
affairs were settled and a brilliant future assured for 
himself and his family did Sir William find time to 
think of his son, who was accordingly sent to Christ 
Church, Oxford. 

The young man must have soon discovered the 
deficiencies of his previous education and realized 
that he was far behind other students of his own age, 
but he applied himself to his studies with such dili- 
gence that he made rapid progress and earned the 
entire approbation of his instructors, while his ami- 
ability and kindness of heart, as well as his skill in all 
sorts of manly sports, made him no less popular with 
his fellow students. But skilful oarsman, sure shot, 
and good athlete as he was, he never lost sight of the 
deeper things of life. Indefatigably as he devoted 
himself to acquiring not only a thorough knowledge 
of the classics, but also of several modern languages, 
so that he was able to converse in French, German, 
Dutch, and Italian, he showed an even greater fond- 
ness for the study of religion. He was especially 
interested in the writings of the Puritans, which were 
spread broadcast at this time, glowing with Christian 
zeal and denouncing the efforts made by the court 
to introduce Catholic forms and ceremonies into 
divine worship in the universities as well as elsewhere. 
Feeling it a matter of conscience to protest against 
these innovations, Penn, with a number of his fellow 
students, reluctantly determined to resist the orders 
of the King, with whom his father stood in such high 

[17] 



WILLIAM PENN 



favor, but whose dissolute life could win neither 
respect nor loyalty from the earnest and high-minded 
youth. 

About this time there appeared at Oxford a man 
whom William had already seen as a child and who 
even then made a deep impression on him. This 
was Thomas Loe, a follower of Fox, the Quaker 
whose teachings he was endeavoring to spread 
throughout the country. He had visited Ireland 
for this purpose and, doubtless at the suggestion of 
Sir William's pious lady, was asked to hold a meet- 
ing at their house. The eleven-year-old William 
never forgot the effect produced by this sermon. 
Even his father, not usually susceptible to religious 
feeling, was moved to tears, and the boy thought 
what a wonderful place the world would be if all 
were Quakers. 

Now that this same Thomas Loe had come to 
Oxford, what could be more natural than that the 
young zealot, already roused to opposition and imbued 
with Puritan ideas, should attend these Quaker 
meetings with companions of a like mind? Strength- 
ened in his childish impressions and convinced that 
divine truth was embodied in Loe's teachings, Penn 
and his friends refused to attend the established 
form of service, with its ceremonies, for which they 
openly expressed their abhorrence and contempt. 
He was called to account and punished by the college 
authorities for this and for attending the Quaker 
meetings, but it only added fuel to the flame. Indig- 

[i8] 



WILLIAM PENN'S FATHER 

nant at this so-called violation of their principles, 
against the injustice of which they felt it a sacred 
duty to rebel, they began to hold meetings among 
themselves for devotional exercises, and only awaited 
a pretext for open revolt. This was soon furnished 
by an order from the King prescribing the wearing 
of collegiate gowns by the students. The young 
reformers not only refused to wear them, but even 
went so far as to attack those who did and tear the 
objectionable garments off from them by force — a 
proceeding which naturally led to their expulsion 
after an official examination, during which Penn had 
spoken boldly and unreservedly in his own and his 
companions' defence. 

The effect of this on the worldly and ambitious 
father may easily be imagined. He had looked to 
his eldest son, on whom he had built such high hopes, 
to carry on his aspiring schemes after his own death, 
and totally unable to comprehend how a mere youth 
could be so carried away by religious enthusiasm, 
the disgrace of William's expulsion from the univer- 
sity was a bitter blow to his pride. It was but a cold 
reception therefore that the young man met with on 
his return to the paternal roof. For a long time his 
father refused even to see him, and when he did 
it was only to overwhelm him with the bitterest 
reproaches. He sternly commanded him to abandon 
his absurd religious beliefs and break off all communi- 
cation with his Oxford associates, and when William 
respectfully but firmly refused to do this until he 

[19] 



WILLIAM, PENN 



should be convinced of their absurdity, the admiral, 
accustomed as an officer to absolute obedience, flew 
into such a passion that he seized his cane and ordered 
his degenerate son out of the house. 

On calmer reflection, however, he became con- 
vinced of the uselessness of such severity, for William, 
he discovered, though moping about, dejected and 
unhappy, was still keeping up a lively correspond- 
ence with his Quaker friends, so he resolved to try 
other methods. Knowing by experience the power 
of worldly pleasures to divert the mind of youth 
and drown serious thought in the intoxication of the 
senses, he determined to resort to this dangerous 
remedy for his son, whose ideas of life, to his mind, 
needed a radical change. He therefore arranged for 
William to join a party of young gentlemen of rank 
who were about to set out on a tour of the continent, 
first visiting France and its gay capital, reckoning 
shrewdly that constant association with young com- 
panions so little in sympathy with Quaker ideas and 
habits would soon convert his son to other views. 
Or if this perhaps did not fully accomplish the pur- 
pose, the allurements of Paris, where King Louis the 
Fourteenth and his brilliant court set such an example 
of luxury and licentiousness, could not fail to complete 
the cure. 

Little to young Penn's taste as was this journey, 
and especially the society in which he was to make 
it, he did not care to renew his father's scarcely 
cooled anger by opposing it, nor was life at home 

[20] 



WILLIAM PENN'S FATHER 

under existing circumstances especially pleasant or 
comfortable. He yielded therefore without protest 
to his father's wishes and set out for Paris with the 
companions chosen for him, well provided with letters 
of introduction which would admit him to the highest 
circles of French society. 

The correctness of the admiral's judgment proved 
well founded, and the associations into which he had 
thrown his son only too well fitted to work the desired 
change. In spite of his inward resistance young 
Penn found himself drawn into a whirl of gayety and 
pleasure for which he soon grew to have more and 
more fondness and which left him no time for serious 
thought. He was presented to the King and became 
a welcome and frequent guest at that dissolute court. 
The life of license and luxury by which he was sur- 
rounded and against which he had almost ceased to 
struggle failed, however, entirely to subdue his better 
nature, as the following incident will show. 

Returning late one evening from some gathering 
wearing a sword, as French custom demanded, his 
way was suddenly stopped by a masked man who 
ordered him to draw his sword, demanding satisfac- 
tion for an injury. In vain Penn protested his inno- 
cence of any offence and his ignorance even of the 
identity of his accuser, but the latter insisted that 
he should fight, declaring Penn had insulted him 
by not returning his greeting. The discussion soon 
attracted a number of auditors, and under penalty 
of being dubbed a coward by refusing to cross swords 

[21] 



WILLIAM PENN 



with his adversary, Penn was obliged to yield. But 
if, as is not unlikely, the whole affair was planned by 
his comrades to force him to use arms, a practice 
forbidden among the Quakers, the youth who under- 
took the role of challenger was playing rather a 
dangerous game; for among his other acquirements 
Penn had thoroughly mastered the art of fencing 
and quickly succeeded in disarming his adversary. 
Instead of pursuing his advantage, however, as the 
laws of duelling permitted, the spectators were 
astonished to see him return the rapier with a courtly 
bow to his discomfited foe and silently withdraw. 
He might yield to the prevailing custom so far as to 
draw his sword, but his conscience would not permit 
him to shed human blood. 

It was with the greatest satisfaction that Sir 
William learned of the change that had been wrought 
in his son, and to make it yet more permanent and 
effectual he ordered him to remain abroad, extending 
his travels to other countries. He was now in a 
position to afford this, as through the favor of the 
King's brother, the Duke of York, he had received 
an important and lucrative post in the admiralty, 
but he would gladly have made any sacrifice to have 
his son return the kind of man he wished him to be. 
But the father's hopes ran too high. Although 
outwardly become a man of the world, William had 
by no means lost all serious purpose in the vortex of 
Parisian life, for he spent some time at Saumur, on 
the Loire, attracted thither by the fame of Moses 

[22] 




T 



HE DUEL 



WILLIAM PENN'S FATHER 

Amyrault, a divine, under whose teaching he re- 
mained for some time and of whom he became a 
zealous adherent. From there, by his father's 
orders, he travelled through various parts of France 
and then turned his steps toward Italy in order to 
become as familiar with the language as he already 
had with French, and to cultivate his taste in art 
by a study of the rich treasures of that country. 



[23] 



Chapter II 

The Plague audits Results — Penn as a Soldier — His Reli- 
gious Struggle — Becomes a Quaker — Imprisonment for 
Attending Meetings — Death of his Father 

IN 1664 another war broke out between England 
and Holland, owing to the refusal of the latter 
to allow the existence of English colonies on the 
coast of Guinea, where the Dutch had hitherto 
enjoyed the exclusive trade. Admiral de Ruyter 
was ordered to destroy these settlements and a 
declaration of war followed. The Duke of York, 
then Lord High Admiral of England, believing the 
services of his friend Admiral Penn indispensable at 
such a juncture, appointed him to the command of 
his own flagship with the title of Great Commander. 
This compelled Sir William to recall young Penn to 
take charge of the family affairs during his absence. 
Rumors of Louis the Fourteenth's favorable disposi- 
tion toward the Dutch also made him fear for his son's 
safety in France. The change wrought in William 
by his two years' absence could not fail to delight 
the admiral. The seriousness of mind which had 
formerly led him to avoid all worldly pleasures had 
vanished and was replaced by a youthful vivacity 
of manner and a ready wit in conversation that were 

[24] 



PLAGUE AND ITS RESULTS 

most charming. In appearance too he had improved 
greatly, having grown into a tall and handsome man, 
his face marked by an expression of singular sweetness 
and gentleness, yet full of intelligence and resolution. 
To prevent any return to his former habits, his 
father took pains to keep him surrounded by com- 
panions of rank and wealth and amid the associa- 
tions of a court little behind that of France in the 
matter of license and extravagance. He also had 
him entered at Lincoln's Inn as a student of law, a 
knowledge of which would be indispensable in the 
lofty position to which he aspired for his son and 
heir. And why should not these hopes of future 
distinction be realized? Was he not in high favor 
not only with the King, but also with the Duke of 
York, who must succeed to the throne on the death 
of Charles.^ Nevertheless, the admiral must still 
have had doubts as to the permanence of this unex- 
pected and most welcome change, for when he sailed 
with the Duke of York in March, 1665, he took 
William with him, feeling it safest, no doubt, to keep 
him for a time under his own eye and away from 
all temptation to relapse into his old ways. These 
prudent calculations were soon upset, however, for 
three weeks later, when the first engagement with the 
Dutch fleet took place, young Penn was sent back 
by the Duke of York with despatches to the King 
announcing the victory. As the bearer, of these 
tidings he was naturally made welcome at court and 
remained in London, continuing his law studies. 

[25] 



WILLIAM PENN 



Then came the plague, which broke out in London 
with such violence as to terrify even the most worldly 
and force upon them the thought of death. Persons 
seemingly in perfect health would suddenly fall dead 
in the streets, as many as ten thousand deaths occur- 
ring in a single day. All who were able to escape fled 
from the city, while those who could not get away 
shut themselves up in their houses, scarcely venturing 
forth to obtain even the necessities of life. The 
terrible scenes which met the eye at every turn 
quickly banished William's newly acquired worldli- 
ness and turned his thoughts once more to serious 
things. Religious questions absorbed his whole 
mind and became of far greater importance to him 
than those of law, with which he should have been 
occupying himself. 

Sir William observed this new change with alarm 
and displeasure on his return with the fleet, and even 
more so when his services were rewarded by the King 
not only by large additions to his Irish estates, but 
also by promises of still higher preferment in the 
future. Of what use would these honors be if the son 
who was to inherit them insisted on embracing a 
vocation that utterly unfltted him for such a position? 
Again he cast about for a remedy that should prove 
as effectual as the sojourn in France had been, and 
this time he sent his son to the Duke of Ormond, 
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, whose court, though a 
gay and brilliant one, was not so profligate as those 
at Paris and London. The admiral had overlooked 

[26] 



PLAGUE AND ITS RESULTS 

one fact, however, in his choice of residence for his 
son; namely, that there were many Quakers in 
Ireland. 

The letters which he carried procured young Penn 
an instant welcome to court circles in Dublin, where 
his attractive person and his cleverness soon made 
him popular. Again he found himself plunged into a 
whirl of gayety and pleasure, to which he abandoned 
himself the more readily as it involved no especial 
reproach of conscience. Soon after his arrival he 
volunteered to join an expedition commanded by 
the Duke's son, Lord Arran, to reduce some mutinous 
troops to obedience, and bore himself with so much 
coolness and courage that the viceroy wrote to Sir 
William expressing his satisfaction with young Penn's 
conduct and proposing that he should embrace a 
military career, for which he seemed so well adapted. 
Greatly to William's disappointment, however, the 
admiral refused his consent, having other plans for 
the future. There was also work for him now 
wherein he could utilize his knowledge of law, some 
question having arisen as to the title of the large 
estates recently granted the admiral by Charles the 
Second. The matter having to be settled by law, 
William was intrusted by his father with the trial 
of the case, which he succeeded in winning. 

One day while at Cork, near which his father's 
property was situated, he recognized in a shop- 
keeper of whom he was making some purchases one 
of the women who had been present at that never- 

[27] 



WILLIAM PENN 



to-be-forgotten meeting held at his father's house 
by Thomas Loe. Much pleased at thus discovering 
an old acquaintance, the conversation naturally 
turned to religious subjects, and on William's express- 
ing the wish that he might again see and hear the 
famous preacher, the Quakeress informed him that 
Loe was then living in Cork and would hold one of 
his usual meetings the following day. It is needless 
to say that young Penn was present on that occa- 
sion and his Oxford experience was repeated. Loe's 
sermon seemed aimed directly at him, for it was 
on **the faith that overcometh the world and the 
faith that is overcome by the world." As the first 
part of the sermon, wherein the preacher depicted 
with glowing enthusiasm the splendid fruits of that 
faith that overcometh, awoke in the young man's 
heart memories of the true peace and happiness that 
had been his so long as he had remained true to his 
beliefs, so the second part, dealing with the faith that 
succumbs to worldly temptations, fell like blows upon 
his conscience. Bitter remorse for his frivolous life 
of the last few years overwhelmed him, and Loe, to 
whom he presented himself at the close of the meet- 
ing, perceiving his state of mind, did not fail to 
strengthen the effect of his discourse by the most 
solemn exhortations. 

For a time filial duty and worldly ambition strug- 
gled against the voice of awakened conscience, but 
the latter finally triumphed. Penn now became a 
regular attendant at the Quaker meetings and 

[28] 



PLAGUE AND ITS RESULTS 

belonged, in heart at least, to the persecuted sect. 
In September, 1667, while present at one of these 
meetings, usually held with as much secrecy as 
possible, in order to avoid the jeers of the rabble, the 
place was suddenly invaded by order of the mayor 
and all the participants arrested. Finding the son 
of so distinguished a personage as Sir William Penn 
among the prisoners, the astonished official offered 
to release him at once if he would promise not to 
repeat the offence, but Penn refused to enjoy any 
advantages over his companions and went with 
them to prison. While there he wrote to the Earl of 
Orrery, complaining of the injustice of his imprison- 
ment, since the practice of religious worship could 
be called neither a criminal offence nor a disturbance 
of the peace. On receipt of this letter an order 
was given for his immediate release, but the report 
that he had joined the Quakers quickly spread, 
calling forth both derision and indignation among 
his friends at court. 

When this rumor reached the admiral, who feared 
nothing so much as ridicule, he promptly ordered 
his son to join him in London. Finding him still in 
the dress of a gentleman with sword and plume, he 
felt somewhat reassured and began to hope that after 
all he might have been misinformed, but the next 
day, when he took William to task for keeping his 
hat on in his presence, the youth frankly confessed 
that he had become a Quaker. Threats and argu- 
ments proving alike useless, the admiral then gave 

[29] 



WILLIAM PENN 



him an hour's time to consider whether he would 
not at least remove his hat before the King and the 
Duke of York, that his future prospects and position 
at court might not be ruined. But WiUiam's resolu- 
tion had been fully matured during his imprisonment 
at Cork, and his conversion was a serious matter 
of conscience. He was forced to admit to himself 
therefore that such a concession would be a violation 
of his principles, and announced at the end of the 
time that it would be impossible for him to comply 
with his father's wishes. At this the admiral's 
hitherto restrained anger burst all bounds. Infuri- 
ated because all his plans and ambitions for the future 
were baffled by what seemed to him a mere notion, 
he heaped abuse and reproaches on his son and 
finally ordered him from the house with threats of 
disinheritance. 

This was a severe test of Penn's religious convic- 
tions. Not only was he passionately devoted to his 
mother, on whose sympathy and support he could 
always count, but he also had the deepest respect 
and regard for his father, in spite of their widely 
different views, but his conscience demanded the 
sacrifice and he made it, leaving his home and all 
his former associations. Now that the die was cast 
he laid aside his worldly dress and openly professed 
himself as belonging to the Friends, as they were 
called, who welcomed him with open arms. It 
would have fared ill with him, however, accustomed 
as he was to a life of affluence and ease, had it not 

[30] 



PLAGUE AND ITS RESULTS 

been for his mother, who provided him with money 
from time to tim^e as she found an opportunity. 

It was not long, however, before the admiral 
relented, owing chiefly to her efforts in his behalf, 
and allowed him to return home, though still refus- 
ing to see or hold any communication with him. It 
must indeed have been a crushing blow to the proud 
and ambitious man of the world to have his son and 
heir travelling about the country as a poor preacher, 
for it was about this time, 1668, that William first 
began to preach. He also utilized his learning and 
talents by writing in defence of the new doctrines he 
had embraced. One of these publications, entitled 
^'The Sandy Foundation Shaken," attracted much 
attention. In it he cleverly attempted to prove that 
certain fundamental doctrines of the established 
church were contrary to Scripture — a heresy for 
which the Bishop of London had him imprisoned. 
Indeed his malicious enemies went so far as to 
claim that Penn had dropped a letter at the time of 
his arrest, written by himself and containing treason- 
able matter, but although his innocence on this point 
was soon established, he was forced, nevertheless, to 
remain for nine months in the Tower. Even the 
King, to whom Sir William appealed on his son's 
behalf, did not dare to intervene for fear of increasing 
the suspicion, in which he already stood, of being an 
enemy to the church. All he could do w^as to send 
the court chaplain to visit Penn and urge him to 
make amends to the irate Bishop, who was deter- 

[31] 



WILLIAM PENN 



mined he should pubhcly retract his pubHshed state- 
ments or end his days in prison. But this the young 
enthusiast refused to do, replying with the spirit of 
a martyr that his prison should be his grave before 
he would renounce his just opinions; that for his 
conscience he was responsible to no man. 

This period of enforced idleness was by no means 
wasted, however. While at the Tower he wrote 
"No Cross, No Crown," perhaps the best known and 
most popular of all his works, wherein for his own 
consolation as well as that of his persecuted brethren 
he explained the need for all true Christians to bear 
the cross. Another, called "Innocence with her 
Open Face," further expounded certain disputed 
passages in the Holy Book that had shared his im- 
prisonment. The manly firmness and courage with 
which Penn bore his long confinement without allow- 
ing his newly adopted beliefs to be shaken forced 
universal respect and sympathy and even softened 
his father's wrath at last. The admiral himself 
had been having troubles. False accusations made 
against him by his enemies had so preyed on his 
mind that his health had given way, and he had been 
forced to resign his post in the admiralty and retire 
to private life. He visited his son several times in 
prison, and his appeals to the Duke of York finally 
secured William's release, without the recantation 
demanded by the Bishop. Further residence in 
London at that time being undesirable, however, he 
went back to his father's estate in Ireland. Here 

[32] 



PLAGUE AND ITS RESULTS 

he labored unceasingly for the liberation of his 
friends in Cork, who were still languishing in prison, 
and at last had the joy of seeing his efforts crowned 
with success by securing their pardon from the 
Duke of Ormond. 

At the end of eight months he returned again to 
England at the wish of his father, whose rapidly 
failing health made him long for his eldest son. He 
had fully relented toward him by this time and a 
complete reconciliation now took place, greatly to 
the joy of all parties. But the year 1670, which 
brought this happiness to Penn, was also one of trial 
for him, owing to the revival of the law against 
dissenters, as all who differed from the doctrines of 
the established church were called, declaring assem- 
blies of more than five persons for religious purposes 
unlawful and making offenders punishable by heavy 
fines or even banishment. Among the thousands 
thus deprived of liberty and property, being at the 
mercy of the meanest informer, one of the first to 
suffer was William Penn. 

On the fourteenth of August, 1670, the Quakers 
found their usual place of meeting in London closed 
and occupied by soldiery. When Penn arrived on 
the scene with his friend William Mead he attempted 
to address the assembled crowd, urging them to dis- 
perse quietly and offer no resistance, which would 
be quite useless. But as soon as he began to speak 
both he and Mead were arrested and taken to 
prison by warrants from the mayor of London for 

[33] 



WILLIAM PENN 



having attended a proscribed meeting and further- 
more caused a disturbance of the peace. The pris- 
oners were tried before a jury on September third. 
Although the three witnesses brought against them 
could produce no testimony to confirm the charge, 
Penn voluntarily confessed that he had intended to 
preach and claimed it as a sacred right. In spite of 
all the indignities and abuse permitted by the court, 
he pleaded his cause so stoutly and so eloquently 
that the jury pronounced a verdict of not guilty. 
This was far from pleasing to the judges, who were 
bent on having Penn punished, so the jury were 
sent back to reconsider, and when they persisted 
were locked up for two days without food or water 
and threatened with starvation unless a verdict were 
reached which could be accepted by the court. 
Even this proving ineffectual they were fined for 
their obstinacy, and refusing to pay these fines were 
sent to prison, while Penn and his friend Mead, 
instead of being released, were still kept in confine- 
ment for refusing to pay a fine which had been arbi- 
trarily imposed on them for contempt of court, j 

The admiral, however, whose approaching end 
made him more and more anxious to have his son 
at liberty, sent privately and paid both fines, thus 
securing the release of both prisoners. Penn found 
his father greatly changed. The once proud and 
ambitious man had experienced the hoUowness of 
worldly things and longed for death. "I am weary 
of the world," he said to William shortly before his 

[34] 



PLAGUE AND ITS RESULTS 



death. "I would not live over another day of my 
life even if it were possible to bring back the past. 
Its temptations are more terrible than death." He 
charged^ his children, all of whom were gathered 
about him, "Let nothing tempt you to wrong your 
conscience; thus shall you find an inward peace that 
will prove a blessing when evil days befall." 

He talked much with William, who doubtless did 
not fail to impress upon his dying father the comfort 
of a firm religious faith, and before he died expressed 
his entire approval of the simple form of worship 
adopted by his eldest and favorite son. Sir William 
died on the sixteenth of September, 1670. Shortly 
before the end he sent messages to the King and to 
the Duke of York with the dying request that they 
would act as guardians to his son, whom he foresaw 
would stand greatly in need of friends and protectors 
in the trials to which his faith would expose him. 
Wealth he would not lack, for the admiral left an 
estate yielding an annual income of about fifteen 
hundred pounds, besides a claim on the royal ex- 
chequer for fifteen thousand pounds, which sum he 
had loaned at various times to the King and his 
brother. 



[35] 



Chapter III 

Penn^s Third Imprisonment — His Happy Marriage — 
Fresh Persecutions — Visits to Germany — Quaker 
Emigration 

AFTER his father's death Penn became more 
absorbed than ever in his chosen mis- 
sion of spreading the gospel as interpreted 
by Fox, which seemed to him the only true 
form of religion. The restraint he had hitherto felt 
obliged to impose on himself in this respect, out of 
deference to his father's prejudices, was now no 
longer necessary and he was free to follow the dictates 
of his soul. But he was soon to suffer the conse- 
quences of having drawn upon himself the displeasure 
of the court by his bold defence during the recent 
trial, and still more by a pamphlet issued soon after 
his father's death in which he fearlessly denounced 
the unjust and arbitrary action of the judges 
not only toward the accused, but also toward the 
jury. Just before the new year of 1671 Penn was 
again arrested on the charge of having held unlawful 
meetings and was sentenced to six months' imprison- 
ment at Newgate, during which time he wrote sev- 
eral important works, chiefly urging the necessity 
of liberty of conscience in England. 

After his release Penn made a journey to Holland 

[36] 



PENN'S THIRD IMPRISONMENT 

and Germany, whither many of the Quakers had fled 
to escape the continual persecutions to which they 
were subjected in their own country. Others had 
crossed the ocean to seek in America an abode where 
they could live without hinderance according to their 
convictions, and the letters written by these drew 
large numbers to this land of promise; for in spite 
of the hardships of the voyage thither, the emigrants 
drew such glowing pictures of the beauty and fertility 
of the country and the happiness of enjoying religious 
worship undisturbed as could not fail to appeal to 
their unfortunate brethren so sorely in need of this 
blessing. 

During his travels Penn had seen many of these 
letters and heard the subject of emigration freely dis- 
cussed, and gradually he formed a plan which indeed 
had been the dream of his youth, although there had 
then seemed no prospect of its ever being realized. 
This plan, however, was forced into the background 
for a time by an event of more personal importance; 
namely, his betrothal to Guglielma Maria Springett, 
daughter of Sir William Springett of Sussex, who 
had greatly distinguished himself as a colonel in 
the parliamentary army and died during the civil 
wars at an early age. His widow and her three 
children, of whom Guli, the youngest, was born 
shortly after her father's death, had retired to the 
village of Chalfont in Buckinghamshire, where she 
afterward married Isaac Pennington, one of the most 
prominent of the early Quakers. It was while 

[37] 



WILLIAM PENN 



visiting Friend Pennington at his home in Chalfont 
that Penn met and fell in love with the charming 
Guli, who willingly consented to bestow her hand on 
this stalwart young friend of her stepfather, whose 
belief she shared. The marriage took place in 1672 
and proved one of lasting happiness on both sides. 
Conjugal bliss did not divert Penn from his sacred 
calling, however, for we find him soon on his travels 
again, with his faithful Guli, who accompanied him 
everywhere until the birth of their first child made 
it no longer possible. This was a son, to whom they 
gave the name of Springett, for his grandfather. 
But even the joys of fatherhood could not confine 
Penn to his home, now doubly happy. He travelled 
about the country constantly, either alone or with 
other distinguished Friends, and was so active both 
as a preacher and as a writer that he soon became 
known as the "sword" of the society. 

The year 1673 brought fresh persecutions to the 
Quakers through the passage by Parliament of the 
so-called Test Act, excluding all dissenters from 
holding office of any kind under the crown, which 
King Charles had been forced to sign, much against 
his will, since it also applied to Catholics. As the 
Quakers were looked upon as among the worst 
enemies of the established church, not only on 
account of their extreme candor and boldness, but 
also for their contempt of all outward forms of wor- 
ship, their day of trial was not long delayed. George 
Fox was one of the first victims, and in order to secure 

[38] 



PENN'S THIRD IMPRISONMENT 

his release Penn once more made his appearance at 
court after an interval of five years. His guardian 
and protector, the Duke of York, received him most 
graciously, reproached him for his long absence, and 
promised to use his influence with the King in Fox's 
behalf. He also agreed to do all in his power to put 
an end to the oppressive persecution of the Friends, 
and dismissed Penn with the assurance that he would 
be glad to see him at any time or be of any service 
to him. The promised intercession, however, was 
either forgotten or without avail, for the merciless 
enactments against dissenters of all kinds continued 
as before and filled all the prisons in the country. 
Little wonder that their thoughts turned to emigra- 
tion, in which some of their brethren had already 
taken refuge. For deep-rooted as is the English- 
man's attachment to his native land, even patriotism 
must yield to that inborn love of freedom and the 
higher demand of the spirit for liberty of conscience. 
To Penn especially this idea appealed with irre- 
sistible force now that he had at last given up hope 
of ever securing these rights in England. But 
whither.^ Not in Holland or Germany was to be 
found the longed-for freedom. Refugees in those 
countries were scarcely less oppressed and persecuted 
than at home. It was across the sea that Penn's 
thoughts flew, to the silent primeval forests of the 
New World, where no tyrannical power yet held 
sway; where every man was the builder of his own 
fortune and the master of his destiny, unfettered by 

[39] 



WILLIAM PENN 



iron-bound laws and customs; where a still virgin 
Nature, adorned with all the charms of a favored 
clime, invited to direct communion with the Creator 
of all things and inspired a peace of mind impossible 
to secure elsewhere. There was the place to found 
the commonwealth of which he had dreamed. All 
that as a boy he had heard from his father's lips 
of that wondrous new Paradise beyond the seas; all 
that as a youth with his intense longing for freedom 
his fancy had painted of such an ideal community; 
all that as a man he had learned from the letters 
of emigrants who had already reached this land of 
promise, all this combined to create an inspiring 
vision that ever unfolded fresh beauties to his mind. 
And when, in 1676, Penn was unexpectedly brought 
into actual contact with this country, no doubt it 
seemed to him like the finger of God pointing out to 
him the land of his dreams. 

In that year Charles the Second, who had already 
disposed of various English conquests and possessions 
in North America, made over to his brother James, 
Duke of York, the province of New Netherlands, 
ceded to him by the Dutch after their defeat in 1665. 
This was that fertile tract of country lying between 
the Delaware and Connecticut Rivers, where the 
Dutch West Indian Trading Company had already 
made some settlements. The Duke of York kept 
only a part of this territory, however; that which was 
named for him. New York. The territory between 
the Hudson and Delaware Rivers he gave in fee to 

[40] 



PENN'S THIRD IMPRISONMENT 

two noblemen, Lord Berkeley and Sir George Car- 
teret, the latter of whom, having been formerly 
governor of the channel island of Jersey lying off 
the French coast, called his part New Jersey. Both 
these provinces granted full freedom of government 
and of belief to all sects — a matter not so much 
of principle perhaps as of policy, to attract thither 
victims of the penal laws in England, for the greater 
the number of colonists who settled in these still 
sparsely populated territories, the more their value 
and their revenues would increase. Nor were these 
calculations unfounded. Hundreds of Puritans, 
among whom were many Quakers, took advantage 
of this opportunity to seek new homes, and their 
industry and perseverance soon brought the land to 
a state of most promising productiveness. Finding 
the care of these distant possessions burdensome, 
however. Lord Berkeley sold his share for a thousand 
pounds to one Edward Billing through his agent 
John Fenwick. Some dispute concerning the matter 
having arisen between these two men, both of whom 
were Quakers, Penn was chosen to settle the contro- 
versy and decided in favor of Fenw^ick, who had 
emigrated with a large party of Friends to the coast 
of Delaware and founded the town of Salem. 

Penn's connection with the American province 
did not end here. Billing, having become embar- 
rassed in his affairs, was forced to resign his in- 
terest in the territory to his creditors, who at his 
request appointed Penn as one of the administrators. 

[41] 



WILLIAM PENN 



This ofBce, though not altogether agreeable to him, 
he felt obliged to accept in the interest of the many 
Quakers already settled there; but if his model 
community were to be founded there, he must have 
a free hand and not be hampered by any regulations 
or restrictions which might be made by Sir George 
Carteret as joint owner of the province of New Jersey. 
He therefore directed his efforts to securing a division 
of the territory, in which he finally succeeded, Carteret 
taking the eastern part, while the western, being sold 
to the highest bidder for the benefit of Billing's cred- 
itors, came into the sole possession of the Quakers. 

For this new State of West New Jersey, Penn 
drew up a constitution, the chief provision of which 
was the right of free worship and liberty of conscience. 
The legislative power was placed almost entirely in 
the hands of the people, to be exercised by chosen 
representatives, while all matters of law and justice 
were intrusted to a judiciary the members of which 
were to serve for a period of not more than two years. 
Copies of this constitution were printed and widely 
circulated among the Quakers, together with a full 
description of the soil, climate, and natural products 
of the new colony. The result was amazing. Penn's 
home, then at Worminghurst in Sussex, was literally 
besieged by would-be emigrants seeking for informa- 
tion, in spite of the fact that in these published 
pamphlets he had strongly urged that no one should 
leave his native land without sufficient cause and 
not merely from idle curiosity or love of gain. Two 

[42] 



PENN'S THIRD IMPRISONMENT 

companies were now organized to assist in the work 
of emigration. The first ship carried over two 
hundred and thirty colonists, and two others soon 
following, it became necessary to establish at once 
a provisional government, consisting of Penn him- 
self with three other members chosen from the two 
companies. 

One of the first acts of the settlers, after safe ar- 
rival in the New World, was to arrive at an amicable 
understanding with the native tribes by paying 
them a good price for the land they had occupied or 
claimed for their hunting grounds. This was quite 
a new experience to the Indians, who had hitherto 
met with only violence and robbery from the white 
men — treatment for which they had usually taken 
bloody revenge. They willingly consented, therefore, 
to bargain with these peaceful strangers, so differ- 
ent from any they had yet seen. "You are our 
brothers," they declared in their broken English, " and 
we will live with you as brothers. There shall be a 
broad path on which you and we will travel together. 
If an Englishman falls asleep on this pathway the 
Indian shall go softly by and say, 'He sleeps, disturb 
him not!' The path shall be made smooth that no 
foot may stumble upon it." 

It was no small advantage to these early settlers, 
struggling against hardships and privations to make 
a home in the wilderness, to be at peace with the 
natives and have nothing to fear from their enmity. 
Often indeed, when threatened with want or danger, 

[43] 



WILLIAM PENN 



they were supplied with the necessities of life by the 
grateful Indians, who knew how to value the friend- 
ship and honesty of their new neighbors. 

Thus West New Jersey bade fair to develop into a 
favorable place forPenn to found that ideal Common- 
wealth of which he had so long dreamed. But in 
the preoccupations of this new enterprise Penn did 
not lose sight of the duties that lay nearest to him. 
Hearing that the Friends he had formerly visited in 
Holland and Germany were anxious to learn from 
his own lips of the settlement in New Jersey, he 
decided to make another journey to those countries, 
the more so as it was important to secure for the new 
colony as many as possible of the German artisans, 
who at that time held a high reputation for skill and 
industry. 

Penn was also especially desirous of making the 
acquaintance of a noble lady whom Robert Barclay 
had first interested in the Quakers and whose influ- 
ence would be of the utmost importance to the 
members of that persecuted sect in Germany. This 
was the Princess Elizabeth of the Rhine, daughter 
of the Elector Palatine Frederick the Fifth, afterward 
King of Bohemia. She was closely connected with 
England, her mother having been a daughter of 
King James the First, and was deeply interested, 
therefore, in all that concerned that country. At this 
time she was living at Herford in Westphalia and was 
distinguished not only for her learning, but still more 
for the benevolence and sincere piety that made her 

[44] 



PENN'S THIRD IMPRISONMENT 

the friend and protectress of all persecuted Christians 
of whatever sect. She had learned from Robert 
Barclay to feel the greatest respect and admiration 
for the Quaker form of belief, and much was hoped 
from her protection. 

In 1677, therefore, Penn again sailed for Holland 
with George Fox, Robert Barclay, and George Keith, 
all prominent members of the Society of Friends, in 
a vessel the captain of which had served under 
Admiral Penn. Rotterdam, Leyden, Haarlem, and 
Amsterdam were visited in succession and large 
meetings held, there being many Quakers in each of 
these cities. At Amsterdam George Fox was left 
behind to attend a general assembly or conclave, 
where questions of importance to the Society were 
to be settled, while Penn and his other two com- 
panions went on to Herford. They were most kindly 
received by the Princess Elizabeth, who not only 
permitted them to hold several public meetings, but 
also invited them frequently to her own apartments 
for religious converse, owing to which she finally 
became a member of the sect herself. 

Robert Barclay now returned to Amsterdam to 
join Fox, but Penn, accompanied by Keith, who was 
almost as proficient as himself in the German lan- 
guage, journeyed on by way of Paderborn and Cassel 
to Frankfort-on-the-Main, where Penn preached with 
great effect, winning over many influential persons 
to his own belief. From Frankfort the two Quaker 
apostles went up along the Rhine to Griesheim near 

[45] 



WILLIAM PENN 



Worms, where a small Quaker community had been 
formed. Here Penn's plan for founding a trans- 
atlantic State for the free worship of their religion 
was received with the greatest enthusiasm, and large 
numbers did indeed afterward emigrate to New 
Jersey, where they took an important place in the 
colony, being among the first to condemn and abolish 
the slavery then existing in America, and established 
a reputation for German worth and integrity beyond 
the seas. 

On his return to Cologne, Penn found a letter 
from the Princess Elizabeth urging him to go to 
Miihlheim to visit the Countess of Falkenstein, of 
whose piety she had already told him. In endeavor- 
ing to carry out this request of his royal patroness, 
however, Penn and his friend met with a misadven- 
ture. At the gates of the castle they encountered 
the Countess' father, a rough, harsh man with small 
respect for religion of any sort. He roundly abused 
them for not taking off their hats to him, and on 
learning that they were Quakers, he had them taken 
into custody and escorted beyond the boundaries of 
his estates by a guard. Here they were left alone 
in the darkness, at the edge of a great forest, not 
knowing where they were or which way to turn. 
After much wandering about they finally reached 
the town of Duisburg, but the gates were closed and 
in spite of the lateness of the season they were forced 
to remain outside till morning. 

From Amsterdam Penn went to join Fox again 

[46] 



PENN'S THIRD IMPRISONMENT 

at Friesland, improving this opportunity to make 
another satisfactory visit to Herford, and parting 
from the noble Princess as a warm friend with whom 
he afterward enjoyed a frequent correspondence. 
Not till early in the winter did the four friends 
return to England, and the stormy passage, together 
with his nocturnal adventure at Duisburg, so affected 
Penn's health that for some time he was obliged to 
submit himself to the care of his devoted wife, 
especially as the importunities of prospective emi- 
grants gave him little chance to recuperate. 



[47] 



Chapter IV 

The Popish Plot — Settlement of Virginia — The Royal 
Cession to Penn — Christening of Pennsylvania — 
Outlines of Penn's Constitution 

THE year 1678 seemingly opened with brighter 
prospects for those who had suffered so se- 
verely in the past for their religious beliefs. 
The clearest sighted members of Parliament 
must have realized the detriment to England when 
such numbers of peaceable citizens, blameless in 
every respect save for their form of worship, were 
forced to abandon their native land, taking with 
them their possessions and their industries, and must 
have realized that such persecutions must end. 

Penn, in spite of being a Quaker, had won the 
esteem of all classes by his high character and his 
ability and enjoyed the confidence of some of the 
most influential personages in the kingdom. Hear- 
ing of this change of attitude adopted by Parliament, 
he laid aside for the time being all thoughts of his 
transatlantic commonwealth and gave himself up to 
the work of securing recognition of his great principle 
of liberty of conscience. Profiting by the favor in 
which he stood with the Duke of York, he endeavored 
to obtain through him the submission to Parliament 
of an Act of Toleration. The Duke looked favorably 

[48] 



THE POPISH PLOT 



on the plan, but being himself a member of the 
Church of Rome, maintained that such a law should 
not be restricted to Protestant dissenters only, but 
apply also to Catholics. All seemed to be going 
well and Penn's efforts bade fair to be crowned with 
success, when suddenly an event occurred which 
deferred for years the passage of this act and added 
fresh fuel to the fires of persecution. This was the 
invention of the famous Popish Plot by an infamous 
wretch named Titus Oates. Formerly a clergyman 
in the Anglican Church, he had been deprived of his 
living because of his shameful excesses and fled to 
Spain, where he joined the Jesuits. Expelled from 
this order also for improper conduct, he revenged 
himself by turning informer and swore to the exist- 
ence of a conspiracy among the Jesuits to massacre 
all the prominent Protestants and establish the 
Catholic religion in England. Even the King, for 
permitting the persecution of Catholics in his king- 
dom, was not to be spared, nor the Duke of York, 
who was not credited with much real devotion to 
that faith. 

It is doubtful whether there ever was any real 
foundation for this atrocious charge based by Oates 
upon letters and papers intrusted to him by the 
Jesuits and which he had opened from curiosity. 
Nevertheless the story was generally credited in 
spite of the absurdity of the statements of such a 
worthless wretch, and aroused the wildest excitement 
throughout the country, in consequence of which 

[49] 



WILLIAM PENN 



the established church, alarmed for its safety, enforced 
more rigorously than ever the edicts against all 
dissenters. Seeing his hopes of religious freedom in 
England once more fading, Penn bent his efforts the 
more resolutely toward the establishment of a haven 
in America. He had long ago decided the principles 
by which his new commonwealth was to be governed; 
namely, the equality of all men in the eyes of the 
law, full liberty of conscience and the free worship 
of religion, self-government by the people, and the 
inviolability of personal liberty as well as of personal 
property — a form of government which, if justly 
and conscientiously carried out, must create indeed 
an ideal community such as the world had never yet 
seen. Nor was it an impossibility, as was proved 
by the gratifying success of the New Jersey colony, 
where a part of these principles, at least, had already 
been put into practice. 

But where was this model State to be founded ? It 
must be on virgin soil, where no government of any 
kind already existed, and where the new ideas could 
be instituted from the beginning. As the most 
suitable spot for this purpose Penn's glance had 
fixed upon a tract of land lying west of New Jersey 
and north of the royal province of Maryland, which 
had been founded in 1632 by a Catholic nobleman, 
Lord Baltimore, as a refuge for persecuted members 
of his own faith, but which also offered liberty to 
those of other sects. The only occupants of this 
territory were a few scattered Dutch and Swedish 

[so] 



THE POPISH PLOT 



settlers, but they were so small in number and so 
widely separated that they need scarcely be taken 
into consideration as possible obstacles to Penn's 
plans after the arrival of the class of colonists he 
favored in numbers sufficient to populate this wide 
extent of land. For the rest the country was still 
an unbroken wilderness, where one could wander for 
days hearing no sound but the songs of the countless 
birds that filled the vast forests. As to the natives, 
in spite of their undeniable cruelty and savage 
cunning when provoked or wronged, it was quite 
possible to make friends and allies of them by kind- 
ness and fair treatment, as the New Jersey settlers 
had already learned. 

This was the territory of which Penn now deter- 
mined to secure possession if possible, a task which 
promised no great difficulty, as the English crown 
claimed sovereignty over all that portion of North 
America lying between the thirty-fourth and the 
forty-fifth degrees north latitude, on the strength of 
the discovery of its coast line by English navigators. 
King James the First had given a patent for part 
of these possessions to an English company, the 
grant including all the land from the Atlantic to 
the Pacific, and some attempt had been made to 
found colonies and develop the riches of the country, 
but later this company was divided into two, one 
taking the northern portion, the other the southern. 
This latter, called the London Company, lost no time 
in fitting up a ship which entered Chesapeake Bay 

[SI] 



WILLIAM PENN 



in 1607, sailed up the James River, and landed its 
passengers at what was afterward called Jamestown, 
the first English colony in America. These colonists 
were soon followed by others, and by the year 1621 
the settlement had so increased that the London 
Company, which had retained the right of ownership, 
exercised through a governor, granted a written 
constitution to the province, which they named 
Virginia. In 1624, however, this company, having 
some disagreement with King James, was dissolved 
and Virginia became the property of the crown. 
This being followed by the voluntary withdrawal of 
the parties owning the northern half of the territory, 
the tract between the fortieth and forty-eighth 
degrees, known as New England, was then deeded 
by James to the Plymouth Company, which made 
no attempt at colonization itself, but sold land to 
others, part of which thus came into possession of 
the Puritan emigrants. 

In 1639, however, during the reign of Charles the 
First, their charter expired and the lands still belong- 
ing to them, including what were afterward the 
States of Pennsylvania, New York, and New Jersey, 
again reverted to the crown. The district lying 
between the Delaware and Hudson Rivers had been 
claimed by the Dutch — Hudson, the English navi- 
gator who discovered it, having been then in the 
service of Holland; and here between Delaware Bay 
and the Connecticut River they had founded their 
colony of New Netherlands. In 1655 the adjoining 

[52] 



THE POPISH PLOT 



territory on the west bank of the Delaware, compris- 
ing the present State of Delaware and the southern 
part of Pennsylvania, had been bought froni the 
Indians by a Swedish trading company at the insti- 
gation of King Gustavus Adolphus and a settlement 
founded under the name of New Sweden. ^ Not 
proving the commercial success hoped for, this was 
afterward abandoned. England's acquisition of New 
Netherlands as the prize of her naval victories over 
Holland, the formation of the colonies of New York 
and New Jersey, the possession of the latter by the 
Quakers and the drafting of its constitution by 
William Penn, — all these have been related in the 
preceding chapter. 

The territory which Penn now had in mind, there- 
fore, had belonged to the crown since the dissolution 
of the Plymouth Company and was again at the 
disposal of the King. As to Penn's confidence in 
his ability to obtain possession of it without difficulty, 
it will be remembered that he had inherited from his 
father a claim of fifteen thousand pounds against the 
royal exchequer. As neither the King nor the Duke 
of York were able to repay this sum, the unpaid 
interest on which, during the ten years since the 
admiral's death, amounted to more than a thousand 
pounds, Penn felt sure the King would welcome a 
proposal to cede this tract of land in America as 
payment of his claim — certainly a simple method 
of releasing himself from this large debt. 

But the affair was not to be so easily settled after 

1 53] 



WILLIAM PENN 



all, for the time was past when the sovereign had 
absolute power to dispose of crown possessions as he 
would, the privy council now having a voice in the 
matter, and to obtain their consent was difficult, 
Penn's ideas in regard to the government of this new 
State being regarded not only as preposterous, but 
also as dangerous to itself and to the crown. He was 
urged, therefore, by his friends to make no mention 
of his real purpose in his petition to the King, lest 
he be forced to renounce his long-cherished plan. 
Although he accepted this prudent advice, there were 
still many obstacles to overcome, owing to the diffi- 
culty of defining any exact boundaries in that track- 
less wilderness and the precautions necessary to 
incorporate in the patent all possible security for 
the maintenance of crown prerogatives. 

While the matter was still before the council and 
the result by no means certain, Penn took advantage 
of an opportunity which offered itself of becoming a 
joint owner of New Jersey, by which, even should 
his petition be refused, his plans could still be carried 
out in that province, if only on a small scale. Sir 
George Carteret, tired of his colonial possessions, 
offered to sell his ownership, and Penn, with a number 
of others, concluded the purchase. Again the public 
confidence in him and his enterprises was shown by 
the haste with which hundreds of families, especially 
from Scotland, took advantage of the liberal terms 
offered to emigrants in his published prospectus 
and enrolled their names as future colonists. At 

1 54] 



THE POPISH PLOT 



length, after much dehberatlon, and owing largely 
to the influence of the Duke of York, to whom Penn 
had again applied for assistance, the council agreed to 
comply with his proposal, partly also, perhaps, from 
the fear that in case they refused Penn might insist 
upon the payment of his debt, for which at the 
moment no means were available. 

On the twenty-fourth of February, 1681, the King 
signed the deed granting to Penn the absolute owner- 
ship of all that territory extending from the Delaware 
River to Ohio on the west and as far as Lake Erie 
on the north, covering an area equal to the whole of 
England, and the fifth of March, at a special meeting 
of the privy council, this patent was delivered to 
Penn in the presence of the King. As evidence of 
His Majesty's high good-humor on this occasion, a 
popular anecdote is told. As Penn, according to the 
Quaker custom, neither took off his hat on the King's 
entrance nor made the usual obeisance, Charles 
quietly removed his own hat, although it was the 
royal prerogative to remain covered on entering an 
assembly of any kind. To Penn's astonished query 
as to the reason for this unusual proceeding he replied 
smilingly, "It is the custom at court for only one 
person to remain covered." 

Another proof of the King's satisfaction at thus 
being freed from his indebtedness to Penn was shown 
in choosing a name for the new province. Penn at 
first suggested New Wales, on account of the moun- 
tainous character of the country, but one of the 

[55] 



WILLIAM PENN 



councillors, who was a Welshman and none too well 
disposed toward the Friends, objected to the idea of 
giving the name of his native land to an American 
Quaker colony. His new domain being as thickly 
wooded as it was hilly, Penn then proposed Sylvania, 
which met with general approval, the King, how- 
ever, insisting that Penn's own name should be placed 
before it, making Pennsylvania or "Penn's wood- 
land." In vain he protested that this would be 
looked on as vanity in him. Charles would hear of 
no denial, declaring good-naturedly that he would 
take the whole responsibility on himself. The name 
of Pennsylvania was inserted in the patent, and 
Pennsylvania it remained. 

This document is still in existence, carefully pre- 
served among the State archives. It is written in old 
English script on a roll of stout parchment, each line 
underscored with red ink and the margins adorned 
with drawings, the first page bearing the head of 
King Charles the Second. It was a proud and joy- 
ful moment for Penn when he received this deed 
from the King's hand, marking the first and most 
important step toward the realization of his dreams. 
"It is a gift from God," he declared reverently. "He 
will bless it and make it the seed of a great nation." 

The patent conferred upon the new owner the 
right to divide the province into counties and munic- 
ipalities; to incorporate towns and boroughs; to 
make laws with the people's consent; to impose 
taxes for public purposes; to muster troops for the de- 

[56] 



THE POPISH PLOT 



fence of the State, and to execute the death sentence 
according to martial law — all on condition that no 
laws should be made in opposition to those existing 
in England, that the royal impost on all articles of 
commerce should be lawfully paid and allegiance to 
the crown duly observed. In case of failure to com- 
ply with these conditions the King reserved the right 
to assume control of Pennsylvania in his own person 
until he should be indemnified to the full value of 
the land. Parliament also reserved the right to im- 
pose taxes on the colonists. By the express desire 
of the Bishop of London it was stipulated that should 
twenty or more of the inhabitants of the province 
desire the services of a clergyman of the established 
church, he should be permitted to dwell among them 
unmolested. Lastly, Penn, the owner, in recogni- 
tion that the land was held in fee of the English 
crown, was to pay an annual tribute to the King of 
England of two bear-skins, with the fifth part of all 
gold and silver found in Pennsylvania at any time. 
Penn set to work at once upon the task of drawing 
up a constitution for his new colony, "with reverence 
before God and good-will toward men," as he states 
in the introduction to this instrument. The sover- 
eign power was to be exercised by the governor, Penn 
himself, jointly with the citizens of the common- 
wealth. For legislative purposes a council of seventy- 
two was to be chosen by the people, one-third of 
which number was to retire at the end of every year 
and be replaced by others selected in the same way. 

[57] 



WILLIAM PENN 



This council was to frame laws and superintend 
their execution; to maintain the peace and security 
of the province; to promote commerce hy the build- 
ing of roads, trading posts, and harbors; to regulate 
the finances; to establish schools and courts of justice 
and generally do all that should be required to pro- 
mote the welfare of the colony. The only preroga- 
tive claimed by Penn for himself was that he and 
his lawful heirs and successors should remain at the 
head of this council and have the right of three votes 
instead of one. 

In addition to the council of state there was to be 
an assembly which at first was to include all free 
citizens of the State, but later, when their number 
became too large, to consist of not more than five 
hundred members, to be chosen annually. All laws 
made by the council must be submitted for approval 
or rejection to this assembly, which also had the 
right to select candidates for public offices, of whom 
at least half must be accepted by the governor. 

These were the outlines of Penn's masterly scheme 
of government, to which were added some forty 
provisional laws to remain in force until such time 
as a council of state could be chosen. These included 
entire freedom of religious belief and worship, any mo- 
lester of which was to be punished as a disturber of the 
peace, and the prohibition of all theatrical perform- 
ances, games of chance, drinking bouts, sports that 
involved bloodshed or the torture of animals — all, in 
short, that could encourage cruelty, idleness, or god- 

[58] 



THE POPISH PLOT 



lessness. Prisoners must work to earn their support. 
Thieves must refund double the amount stolen or 
work in prison until the sum was made up, and all 
children above the age of twelve years must be 
taught some useful trade or occupation to prevent 
idleness. Many of these provisional laws and regu- 
lations have remained permanently in force in Penn- 
sylvania, the council being unable to substitute 
anything better, and their wisdom has been amply 
proved by the experience of more than two hundred 
years. 



[59] 



Chapter V 

Description of Penn^s Domain — Negotiations with the 
Indians by Penn's Agent — Death of Penn's Mother — 
Final Instructions to his Family — Departure of the 
Welcome 

THIS newly acquired territory, which was 
henceforth to absorb all Penn's attention, 
lay to the north of Maryland and west of 
New Jersey, of which Penn was now joint 
owner, reaching from the Delaware River on the east 
to the Ohio on the west, and north as far as Lake 
Erie. The eastern and western boundaries were 
well defined by these two rivers, but on the north 
and south the lines had yet to be agreed upon with 
the owners of the adjoining colonies — no easy 
matter where the land was largely primeval forest, 
untrodden by human foot save for the Indians who 
traversed it on their hunting expeditions. The 
greater part of the tract was occupied by the various 
ranges of the Allegheny Mountains, whose bare 
rocky peaks offered no very inviting prospect and 
held out few hopes as to a favorable climate. But 
wherever trees could find nourishment for their 
roots, dense forests extended, untouched as yet by 
any axe, while verdant meadows lined the countless 
streams that descended from the mountain heights 

[60] 



PENN'S DOMAINS 



to empty their waters into the Allegheny and Sus- 
quehanna Rivers which flowed through the middle 
of the State. The only outlet to the ocean was 
through the Delaware River, which opened into 
Delaware Bay, where there was a good harbor. 

The climate of the country was a diversified one. 

While in the mountain regions the winters were 

severe, the eastern slopes toward the Atlantic Ocean, 

as well as those in the northwest toward the Ohio 

River and Lake Erie, enjoyed a temperate climate 

with often great heat in the summer. In these 

regions the soil was rich and fruitful, promising 

bountiful returns to the settler after he had once 

succeeded in clearing the land and making room for 

the plough. The forests, almost impenetrable in 

places with masses of sumach bushes and climbing 

vines, furnished almost every kind of wood already 

known to the English colonists: cedar, cypress, pine, 

and sycamore, as well as the full-blooming tulip tree, 

which flourished in sheltered spots. Game of all 

sorts abounded and the streams were full of fish. 

The most delicious grapes and peaches, chestnuts 

and mulberries grew wild in protected places, and 

flowers of tropical gorgeousness greeted the eyes of 

astonished settlers. The gold and silver of which 

King Charles had been so careful to reserve a share 

were not found in the province, but there was plenty 

of iron and an inexhaustible supply of the finest coal. 

Also there were valuable salt springs, as well as those 

useful materials, lime, slate, and building stone. In 

[6i] 



WILLIAM PENN 



short, it was a country well fitted to supply every 
need of the settler and offering magnificent. prospects 
for the future. 

To be sure, it was inhabited by several tribes of 
Indians, chief of which were the Lenni Lennapes in 
the southern part and the Iroquois in the northern, 
but if they were disposed at first to regard with 
suspicion this invasion of their domains, they 
soon found the newcomers fair and honest in their 
dealings with them and willing to pay for the right 
to settle there, like the New Jersey colonists. Indeed 
these semi-savage natives seemed to place little 
value on the permanent possession of the land over 
which they claimed sovereignty. They had no fixed 
abiding place, but roamed about at will, settling down 
for a time where the hunting was especially good or 
the streams promised to fill their nets with fish. So 
long as they were free to hunt and fish as they chose 
and their women had a small piece of open ground 
in which to prepare the maize cakes that served them 
for bread, no hostile attacks were to be feared from 
them. 

Penn himself little suspected that he had received 
an empire in exchange for his claim against the crown, 
nor did he realize as long as he lived the full value 
of his newly acquired territory. The idea of enrich- 
ing himself or his family was as far from his thoughts 
as it had been close to his father's. With him it was 
purely a question of obtaining a home for his ideal 
Commonwealth, and he refused all the offers to pur- 

[62] 



PENN'S DOMAINS 



chase rights of trade there that poured in upon him 
as soon as the patent had been granted, even though 
he was in great need of money at the time and 
although the sale of such rights was not only perfectly 
legitimate, but no more than any other in his position 
would have done without hesitation. One merchant, 
for instance, offered him six thousand pounds, besides 
two and a half per cent of the yearly profits, for the 
exclusive right to trade in beaver hats between the 
Delaware and Susquehanna Rivers. Penn was re- 
solved that trade in his colony should be no more 
restricted than personal liberty or freedom of con- 
science, and the more widely his principles of govern- 
ment became known, the larger grew the number 
of would-be emigrants who wished to settle there. 
He soon found himself so overrun with agents wishing 
to consult him as to the sale of lands or the formation 
of trading companies that he scarcely knew which 
way to turn. There was hardly a city in the three 
kingdoms that did not send messengers or petitions, 
while offers came even from Holland and Germany, 
where Penn was so well known. 

Emigration companies were also formed for the 
foundation of settlements on a larger scale. To one 
of these, in Frankfort-on-the-Main, Penn deeded a 
tract of fifteen thousand acres along the banks of 
a navigable river, with three hundred acres in the 
interior on which to found the capital of the new 
State. A trading company in Bristol concluded a 
contract for the purchase of twenty thousand acres 

[63] 



WILLIAM PENN 



and set to work at once to fit out a ship, while in 
London, Liverpool, and Bristol emigrants gathered 
in such numbers that Penn soon had no fear as to 
the settlement of his colony. Among these, it is 
true, were many adventurers in search of a fortune 
only, which they hoped to make more quickly and 
easily under Penn's form of government than else- 
where. But by far the greater number were victims 
of oppression, seeking to escape the endless perse- 
cutions to which they were subjected at home on 
account of their religious opinions, and taking with 
them little but good resolution and a pair of useful 
hands. 

Immediately on receiving the patent Penn de- 
spatched his cousin, Colonel Markham, with three 
ships to take possession of the new province in his 
name, to arrange with Lord Baltimore as to the 
doubtful boundary lines on the south, and above all 
to make friends with the Indians by concluding a 
formal treaty with them for the purchase of such 
lands as they laid claim to. The kindliness of his 
nature made it impossible for him to treat the unfor- 
tunate natives as other Europeans had done, driving 
them ruthlessly from their own hunting grounds 
wherever the land was worth taking possession of 
and forcing them as far as possible into slavery. 
The Spanish explorers especially, in their insatiable 
thirst for gold, had even robbed them of all the pre- 
cious metals and pearls they had and endeavored 
by the most shameful cruelty to extort from them 

[64] 



PENN'S DOMAINS 



knowledge of the location where they found the 
gold of which their ornaments were made. If they 
offered the slightest resistance or took up arms to 
defend themselves or regain their liberty, they were 
hunted like wild beasts by bloodhounds trained for 
that purpose, or fell in heaps before the murderous 
bullets against which their arrows were of no avail. 
Even the Puritan settlers of New England, who 
should have practised the Christian virtues of justice 
and humanity, were guilty of many acts of cruelty 
and treachery toward the red men, with whom they 
were perpetually at warfare in consequence. 

Penn hoped, by the use of gentler methods, to 
win the confidence of the Indians, who must have 
already discovered from the New Jersey settlers 
that all white men were by no means like those with 
whom they h^d first come in contact. It was neces- 
sary, in fact, if his colony were to enjoy permanent 
peace and security, and in spite of the ridicule which 
such humane ideas was likely to evoke, Markham 
was charged with the strictest instructions in this 
regard. He was a bold and determined man, devoted 
to his kinsman Penn, the wisdom and purity of 
whose ideas he fully appreciated in spite of his sol- 
dierly training. On his arrival in Pennsylvania he 
lost no time in concluding a treaty with the chiefs 
or sachems of the principal tribes, conveying to 
Penn for a fixed sum all lands claimed by them with 
the solemn assurance in his name that no settler 
should ever molest or injure them. The next two 

[6s] 



WILLIAM PENN 



ships which came over from England brought three 
agents authorized to make further treaties of peace 
and friendship, thus strengthening the work begun 
by Markham, and also an address written by Penn 
himself to be read to the Indians, expressing it as 
his earnest wish "by their favor and consent, so to 
govern the land that they might always live together 
as friends and allies." 

Markham was less fortunate, however, in his 
negotiations with Lord Baltimore concerning the 
doubtful boundary lines, which, if not definitely fixed, 
were likely to prove a source of much contention. 
The existence of a Quaker colony adjoining his own 
province was by no means pleasing to the Catholic 
nobleman, who, if left to himself, would have done all 
in his power to prevent its foundation. The matter 
was only settled by the King's personal interference 
in Penn's behalf, and then only a temporary decision 
was arrived at, the Duke of York's influence having 
finally to be brought to bear before everything could 
be arranged satisfactorily for the future prosperity 
of the new State. Pennsylvania, as already men- 
tioned, had but one direct outlet to the Atlantic 
Ocean. Should this be cut off or obstructed at any 
time by enemies, it would be ruinous to the trade of 
the colony. Penn therefore determined to acquire 
if possible a strip of land forming the west shore of 
Delaware Bay on the peninsula extending between 
Delaware and Chesapeake Bays, the possession of 
which was indispensable for the protection of Penn- 

[66] 



PENN'S DOMAINS 



sylvania's trading vessels. After much negotiation 
this was accompHshed with the Duke of York's aid 
and the sovereign rights to this piece of coast granted 
to Penn and his heirs forever. This removed the 
last obstacle to his undisputed possession of the new 
territory and its successful development, and he was 
now free to cross the Atlantic and assume the gov- 
ernment in person. 

Just at this time, however, a great misfortune 
befell him in the sudden death of his mother, that 
tender guardian of his childhood, friend and mediator 
of his troubled youth, and devoted sharer of the hopes 
and plans of his manhood, whose support and sym- 
pathy had never failed him. So overwhelmed with 
grief was he by this loss that for a time his health 
was seriously affected and it was many weeks before 
he recovered his peace of mind. This sad event 
also added to Penn's difficulties. Being unwilling 
to take his wife and children with him on this first 
voyage, he had hoped to leave them under his 
mother's wise and experienced guardianship, in which 
case he could have parted from them with good heart, 
feeling sure that all would be well during his absence. 
This was now no longer possible, however, and 
another anxiety was added to his load. 

In these days of swift and luxuriously appointed 
steamships, when the voyage from Europe to America 
is so quickly and comfortably made, it seems strange 
to think of regarding it with so much anxiety and 
apprehension; but in Penn's time steamships were 



WILLIAM PENN 



unknown and travellers had to depend on clumsy 
sailing vessels, entirely at the mercy of the winds, 
while the passage, now made easily in from five to 
seven days, then required at least six weeks, and some- 
times, with contrary winds, double that. And aside 
from the dangers of such a sea voyage, what unknown 
experiences awaited them in that distant land, where 
homes must be hewed out from the wilderness, where 
privation and hardships of every sort must be en- 
dured, where death indeed by Indian tomahawk or 
knife was possible at any moment! Under these 
circumstances even so brave and resolute a man as 
William Penn might well feel anxiety over such a 
voyage and its outcome. For a time he did think of 
taking with him the wife and children from whom he 
found it so hard to part, that he might watch over 
them himself; but the giant task awaiting him 
beyond the sea claimed all his mind and strength 
and he feared the care of a family at such a time 
might defeat the whole purpose of his journey, to say 
nothing of his dread of exposing them to the dangers 
and uncertainties of a life of which he had heard 
more than enough from those who had already 
experienced it. But Penn had firm faith in God and 
in the righteousness of a cause which aimed not at 
personal gain but the bodily and spiritual welfare 
of thousands, and which if it succeeded must result 
in the creation of a veritable earthly Paradise. He 
therefore did all that lay in his power to further it 
and left the issue in the hands of Providence, 
[68] 



PENN'S DOMAINS 



Before leaving he made a sort of testament con- 
taining his parting instruction's to his dear ones, to 
be kept ever before their eyes. In this he laid partic- 
ular stress on the proper education of his children, 
who, if all went well, would one day be called to 
govern the State of Pennsylvania, and charged his 
wife to live as economically as possible in other 
respects, but to spare nothing to this end. The two 
sons, Springett and William, were to be thoroughly 
grounded in all branches of knowledge necessary to 
their future position, especially in agriculture, ship- 
building, surveying, and navigation. The only 
daughter, Letty or Letitia, was to receive also a 
suitable training in all domestic affairs. Above 
all, they were to be taught piety and the fear of God 
and to strive with all their strength to attain these 
virtues. "Let your hearts be righteous before the 
Lord and put your trust in Him," he concluded; 
"then no one will have power to harm or injure you." 

Autumn was already approaching before the Wei-* 
come, which was to carry Penn across the ocean, 
was ready to set sail. It was a fine vessel of three 
hundred tons and larger than most ships crossing 
the Atlantic in those days, but even its capacity 
was taxed to the utmost, for more than a hundred 
colonists, mostly of the wealthier class, were eager to 
make the voyage with the owner of the new province, 
and each had to carry sufficient provisions to last 
possibly for twelve or fourteen weeks. Even then 
many who had been accustomed to a life of ease 

[69] 



WILLIAM PENN 



and luxury were forced to content themselves with 
scanty rations lest the supply give out. The quantity 
of luggage of all sorts required by so many per- 
sons was also no small matter, although no one 
was allowed to carry any material for house fittings, 
such as doors or windows, but Penn himself, who 
also took with him a horse. The hold of the ship 
was full and even the deck lined with chests and boxes 
when at last, on the first of September, 1682, the 
Welcome was ready to start on her journey. As 
soon as Penn had come on board after parting with 
his family, the anchor was lifted and the good ship 
sailed away from E)eal,_followed by the prayers and 
benedictions of thousands. 

It was already late in the season and a dangerous, 
trying winter voyage was before them, should the 
passage prove a long one. The winds were fair, 
however, and all promised well, when the alarming 
discovery was made that an unmarked and unwel- 
come guest was on board; namely, the smallpox, one 
of the worst diseases that could have broken out, 
since on a crowded vessel it was impossible to prevent 
infection by isolating the patients. At first the epi- 
demic seemed so mild it was not thought necessary 
to turn back, but it gradually grew more and more 
malignant and raged to such an extent that for three 
weeks deaths were of daily occurrence and more 
than half of the ship's company were swept away. 
There was no physician of any kind on board, but 
Penn labored heroically to relieve the sufferers, 

[70] 



PENN'S DOMAINS 



placing all his supplies at their disposal, watching 
by their bedsides, and endeavoring to banish by the 
word of God the deadly fear that accompanies con- 
tagious diseases. But it was of no avail. Day after 
day death continued to claim its toll. After the 
horrors of such an experience, it may be imagined 
with what joy and rapture the first sight of the shores 
of America was hailed by those who had survived 
that terrible nine weeks' voyage. 



[71] 



Chapter VI 

PenrCs Arrival — The Founding of Philadelphia — First 
General Assembly — Building of the '^ Blue Anchor'* 
— The First School and Printing Press 

ON the twenty-seventh of October the Wel- 
come cast anchor before Newcastle, a small 
village on the strip of land granted to Penn 
by the Duke of York. News of the arrival 
of the vessel quickly spread and the entire population, 
young and old, regardless of nationality, flocked 
to welcome the long-expected governor. English, 
Scotch, and Irish stood side by side with the stolid 
German, the clumsy Hollander, and the fair-haired 
Swede, all eager to behold at last the man in whose 
hands lay the moulding of their future. The native 
children of the wilderness in their strange dress, with 
high fringed moccasins, an eagle or heron's feather 
thrust through the head band, bow in hand, a quiver 
of feathered arrows fastened to the shoulder, also 
flocked to meet him. Who can say which gazed 
with keener interest on the approaching ship flying 
a great English flag from her masthead, the white 
men, who had some idea of what to expect from the 
newcomer, or the redskins, who in spite of their ap- 
parently calm indifference must have been inwardly 
consumed with curiosity to see what sort of man it 

[72] 



PENN'S ARRIVAL 



was in whose name and by whose orders they had 
met with treatment so different from any that had 
hitherto been accorded them by white men. Cer- 
tainly nothing but good-will could have been read 
in the noble features and the earnest, kindly gaze 
of the dignified-looking man who now disembarked 
from the vessel, distinguished only from his compan- 
ions by the broad blue scarf he wore. As he stepped 
ashore on the landing stage and received the greetings 
of his cousin, Markham, a deafening shout burst 
from the assembled throng. Deeply moved, Penn 
bowed in acknowledgment of the tribute, and through 
the tears that glittered in his eyes shone the resolve 
to merit the confidence so spontaneously expressed. 
The following day, after he had somewhat recov- 
ered from the long and trying voyage, a meeting of 
the people was held in the town-hall and the legal 
documents pertaining to the transfer of the tract 
were read aloud, after which a deputy of the Duke 
of York handed to Penn, in the name of his master, 
a flask of water and a small basketful of earth in 
token that the land had been actually delivered over 
to him. The new owner then arose and in his deep 
rich voice addressed the assembly, which listened in 
breathless silence to his words. He told how from 
early youth it had been his dream to found some- 
where a free State to be governed by the people, 
where full liberty of conscience could be enjoyed and 
the Christian virtues flourish. He explained the 
principles according to which he had drawn up the 

[73] 



WILLIAM PENN 



constitution for Pennsylvania, and promised that 
the same laws should be followed in the adminis- 
tration of this additional territory which had been 
granted to him, assuring the people that the chief 
power should be exercised by himself only until the 
new constitution could be put into force, during 
which time he would endeavor to wield it to the best 
of his ability for the public good. Lastly he retained 
all existing officials in their positions as proof that 
he harbored no prejudices and was disposed to deal 
fairly in all particulars. 

When he had finished speaking a rousing cheer 
testified to the approval of his audience and he was 
unanimously urged to retain the governorship of 
the new territory, making it a part of Pennsylvania. 
This he promised to take into consideration, leaving 
the matter to be decided at the next assembly, which 
was to be held at Upland, a settlement made by the 
Swedes in Delaware, and up to this time the most 
important town in that region. This was now Penn's 
destination, and as he sailed up the Delaware River 
his heart must have thrilled with delight at the fresh 
beauties revealed by each curve of the winding 
stream, until at last the settlement was reached and 
he stepped ashore on his own dominions, his Penn- 
sylvania. The spot where Penn first landed is still 
shown, marked by a solitary pine tree. 

Here, too, his arrival was hailed with general 
rejoicing. Those who had preceded him to America 
with Markham and done all in their power to carry 

[74] 



PENN'S ARRIVAL 



out his plans looked anxiously for his coming to 
better their situation, which truly was in need of 
improvement. They had been received in the most 
friendly way, it is true, by the Swedish settlers, who 
had given them all the assistance possible, but their 
hospitality was unable to afford shelter for all. A 
few, whose means permitted, had managed to bring 
over with them enough lumber to build a small 
house at once, but the majority were forced to live 
in tents or huts made from clay and the branches 
of trees, neither of which offered much protection 
against the severe weather of the winter months. 
Some had even made use of the caves hollowed out 
from the high banks of the Delaware by the Indians 
in former times or dug new ones for themselves, 
finding them a better shelter than any other available. 
It was in one of these caves that the first birth in 
the settlement occurred, and the child, who was 
named John Key, received from Penn the gift of a 
building site in the new town he had planned. 

His first care was to establish a permanent location 
for the colonists who had come over with him before 
they should scatter in search of homes, as the pre- 
vious ones had done, regardless of any definite plan. 
Markham was in favor of using Upland, or Chester 
as Penn now called it, as the nucleus of the future 
city. But Penn had made a better choice, in which 
he was supported by Thomas Holme, an experienced 
surveyor whom he had sent out from England and 
who had already thoroughly explored the surrounding 

[7S] 



WILLIAM PENN 



country. A more favorable spot for the location of 
a great commercial centre could scarcely have been 
found than the one thus selected. It was at the 
junction of the Schuylkill and Delaware Rivers, 
where the high banks of the latter ensured a safe 
harbor, while near by Holme had discovered quarries 
containing an inexhaustible supply of the finest 
building stone, which would make the construction 
of houses a comparatively simple matter. Penn lost 
no time in purchasing this land from the three 
Swedes to whom it belonged and set to work at once 
with the assistance of Thomas Holme to draw up 
plans for laying out the new city, which was to re- 
ceive the name of Philadelphia, signifying "brotherly 
love." This being the ruling principle on which 
his State was founded, he wished it to attract thither 
all who had suffered so bitterly from the lack of 
brotherly love in religious matters. Before a single 
one of the trees that covered the spot was felled, 
before a single foundation stone was laid, the plan 
of the whole city was already clear in Penn's mind 
and the enterprising Holme began at once to lay out 
its streets and public squares. An additional tract 
of about two square miles was also purchased, so that 
these might be of ample width and size to afford the 
future inhabitants plenty of space and air, while 
the building lots were to be large enough to permit 
every house to be surrounded by a garden, thus giv- 
ing the city the appearance, as Penn expressed it, of 
a green country village. 

[76] 



PENN'S ARRIVAL 



His next act was to summon a general assembly 
of the people, at which were also present delegates 
from those settlements on Delaware Bay which were 
anxious to join Penn's Commonwealth, a desire which 
was granted, the assembly unanimously agreeing to 
the union of the two territories. The constitution 
drawn up by Penn was accepted almost without a 
change, and to the forty provisional laws were added 
twenty-one more, made necessary by the special 
requirements of the new State. In three days the 
whole work of legislation was completed, a proof of 
the unanimity of opinion that existed among these 
enthusiasts drawn thither by the same desire, that 
of finding an asylum where they could live undis- 
turbed in the enjoyment of their religious convictions. 
Once this blessing was secured, they willingly sub- 
mitted to laws and regulations that may not have 
been altogether in accordance with their own ideas, 
as indeed could scarcely have been expected among 
people of so many different nationalities and tradi- 
tions. This matter settled, Penn now made a series 
of visits to his neighbors the governors of New York, 
Maryland, and New Jersey, hoping by a personal 
interview with Lord Baltimore to arrive at some 
settlement of the troublesome boundary question, 
but failing in this he returned to his own colony, 
where there was abundance of work for him. 

After Penn's departure from England, hundreds 
who had hitherto hesitated decided at once to follow 
him. During the Spring of 1683 twenty-three ships 

177] 



WILLIAM PENN 



came sailing up the Delaware River, filled with colo- 
nists for whom it was necessary to provide quarters 
that they might lose no time in making a home for 
themselves while the favorable season lasted. This 
task was made somewhat easier now, as the inde- 
fatigable Holme had already explored the whole 
State and divided it into counties. In order that all 
might have an equal chance, Penn had the land sold 
at public auction. Prices were absurdly low, averag- 
ing threepence an acre, with an additional rental of 
one shilling on every hundred acres, which was to 
form a sort of State revenue for the governor. When 
it is remembered that Penn had not only paid the 
English government for the land originally, even 
though a comparatively small sum, but had also 
bought it again from the Indians, whose right of pos- 
session seemed to him far more well founded than 
that of the English crown, this rental seems a poor 
compensation, and he can hardly be blamed for 
afterward reserving a considerable estate for himself 
and his children, especially as he also made a hand- 
some provision both for the Duke of York and for 
his friend and co-worker George Fox. The colonists 
now found themselves in the midst of stirring times, 
especially in the region of the new town, Philadelphia. 
Alloted building sites were cleared of trees and all 
who could work were pressed into service to secure 
as soon as possible a better shelter against the 
weather than was afforded by the tents or temporary 
huts already erected. Even delicate women unused 

l78] 



PENN'S ARRIVAL 



to manual labor of any kind helped their fathers or 
husbands in the fields as they could, cooked, carried 
wood and water, and cared for the cows they had 
brought with them from England, some even sawing 
wood or carrying mortar for building. If strength or 
courage failed, it was restored and hearts and hands 
again strengthened by the singing of some hymn and 
by the remembrance of the inestimable blessing which 
was theirs as a reward of their labors and sacrifices. 
The first building completed was a block-house 
twelve feet wide and twenty-two feet long, called 
the ''Blue Anchor" and forced to serve a variety of 
purposes. It was used as a general place of business, 
and being on the bank of the river, formed a landing 
place for vessels, as well as a tavern. Later it was 
also used for a post-house, for Penn, realizing the 
necessity of some regular means of communication 
between Philadelphia and the outlying settlements 
to the west, soon established a messenger post service 
by which news could be sent and received once a 
week. Travellers could also be provided with horses 
if desired. Few availed themselves of this service 
at first, it is true, for the rates were very high; the 
delivery of a letter from Philadelphia to. Trenton 
Falls in New Jersey, for example, costing threepence, 
and ninepence to Baltimore, Maryland. The "Blue 
Anchor" soon had companions, however. In the 
course of a few months as many as eighty houses had 
been built and a regular trade gradually developed. 
Merchants set up shops supplied with merchandise 

[79] 



WILLIAM PENN 



such as was constantly arriving by vessel from Eng- 
land. Trained artisans were now available to do 
the work that every man had been hitherto obliged to 
perform for himself as best he could. The husband- 
man betook himself to the hoe and plough wherever 
there was a clearing large enough to use them and won 
such rich harvests from the virgin soil that it soon 
became no longer necessary to bring grain from 
abroad. 

The interiors of the houses were quite as rude and 
rough as the outsides. Once sure of a sound roof to 
cover them, the settlers were content with only the 
barest necessities in the way of household furniture, 
whatever luxuries and comforts they may have been 
accustomed to in the past. Costly furnishings would 
have formed indeed a strange contrast to the rough 
bark-covered logs that constituted the walls, and 
the covering of lime and moss that served as hang- 
ings, or the hard-packed clay that took the place of 
boards for flooring. A table, a bench or two, a bed, 
all hewed by hand with an axe and innocent of saw 
or plane, besides a few necessary cooking utensils, — 
these sufficed for the needs of the hard-working set- 
tlers, who only sought the shelter of a house when 
night or stormy weather made work without impos- 
sible and the axe and plough must needs be laid 
aside. Not until the original block-houses began to 
be replaced by stone buildings was any thought given 
to interior convenience, but as soon as it became 
possible to employ the services of skilled workmen 

[80] 



PENN'S ARRIVAL 



the question of comfort and even elegance began to 
be more considered. Nor was this long in coming, 
for in less than a year from the time when Penn first 
landed at Newcastle there were more than a hundred 
stone houses erected in Philadelphia, and two years 
later the number had increased to six hundred. 
Penn could with truth assure his English friends that 
his American colony was the largest ever founded 
on private credit, and this in no spirit of undue pride 
or self-applause. "In seven years," he writes, "with 
the help of God and of my noble companions, I will 
show you a province that shall rival our neighbors' 
growth of forty years." Nor did he leave any stone 
unturned on his part to make good this prophecy. 

One of his chief desires was to provide some means 
for the education of the colonists' children that they 
might not grow up rude and ignorant — a state of 
things most undesirable among a people who were 
to govern themselves. This was no easy matter, 
for the hard-working settler, struggling to wrest a 
home from the wilderness, needed the help of his 
children as soon as they were old enough to be of any 
use. He himself was little disposed after the day's 
labors to devote the evenings to teaching his children, 
even did his own education warrant it, nor could 
he spare the time to send them to a school. Any 
regular form of tuition, moreover, could only be 
possible to those living in Philadelphia. For those 
who had settled many miles, sometimes a whole 
day's journey to the westward, it would have been 

[8i] 



WILLIAM PENN 



impossible to make paths through the trackless 
wilderness for their children, even had there been a 
school within reach. 

Nevertheless Penn made every exertion to accom- 
plish this end, and as early as December, 1683, even 
before the site of Philadelphia was entirely cleared 
of trees, he had a certain Enoch Flower open a 
school in a wretched wooden cabin which was divided 
into two rooms. Instruction was confined, however, 
to reading and writing, for the former of which a 
charge of four shillings, the latter six shillings, a 
quarter, was made, to form a school fund. Arrange- 
ments were also made by which the children of distant 
settlers could be provided with board and lodging 
at a cost of ten pounds a year. This primitive 
institution was gradually improved and enlarged till 
in six years' time the position of head master was 
assumed by Penn's friend, George Keith. By the 
efforts of a certain William Bradford who had come 
over from England on the Welcome, a printing press 
was also set up in Philadelphia, the first product of 
which, of any note, was a calendar for the year 1687. 

Another of Penn's special cares was the mainte- 
nance of friendly relations with the Indians, for which 
Colonel Markham had already paved the way. He 
made it a personal duty to win their confidence and 
to this end mingled with them as much as possible, 
roaming about with them through the forest, wholly 
unarmed, sharing their meals, and even joining in 
the games and sports of the young men, at which he 

[82] 




p 



ENN AND THE IXDIJXS 



PENN'S ARRIVAL 



sometimes displayed skill or agility equal to their 
own. In this way he also learned their language and 
became so familiar with their habits and manner of 
thought that it became as easy for him to communi- 
cate with them as if he had been one of themselves. 
It was necessary, however, for him to establish 
peaceful relations with all the Indian tribes claiming 
his territory as their hunting grounds, as well as with 
those nearer at hand, for the farther the settlers pene- 
trated into the wilderness the greater was the danger 
of their being treated by the Indians as hostile in- 
vaders, unless protected by some agreement. He 
therefore determined to invite all the tribes to a gen- 
eral council for the purpose of concluding a solemn 
treaty of peace and friendship. 



[83] 



Chapter VII 

The Indian Conference — Signing of the Treaty — Penn 
Returns to England to Defend his Rights against Lord 
Baltimore — Accession of James the Second — His De- 
thronement and Accession of William the Third 

THE place chosen by Penn for this conference 
was a spot which had been used by the 
natives from time immemorial for such 
purposes. It was called "Sakimaxing," now 
Shakamaxon, meaning "Place of the King," and was 
situated on the bank of the Delaware not far from 
the site of Philadelphia. The wide-s'p reading branches 
of a huge elm, then at least a hundred and fifty years 
old, shaded the beautiful spot which commanded a 
superb view of the river and the dark woods of the 
New Jersey shore beyond. Long before a paleface 
ever entered these regions the Indians had assem- 
bled here to hold their councils, settle their disputes, 
and smoke the pipe of peace, as was their custom. 
It was here too that Colonel Markham had first 
treated with them. 

They willingly obeyed the summons of the "great 
Onas," as they called the white chief who had com- 
pletely won their hearts, while the distant tribes who 
had never seen Penn in person were most curious 
to behold this paleface of whom they had heard so 

[84] 




Cp'HE CONFERENCE 



THE INDIAN CONFERENCE 

much and who must be so different from any other 
of whom they had ever heard. They arrived in 
bands, in their picturesque garb, the skin of some 
animal or a handwoven blanket wrapped about the 
upper part of their bodies, which were marked with 
strange signs and painted in the most brilliant colors, 
their feet enclosed in leather moccasins, making 
possible a light and perfectly noiseless tread, their 
heads adorned with the huge war bonnets of many- 
colored feathers. All the great chiefs were present, 
among them the wise old Tamemund, most distin- 
guished of all. Penn, now in the prime of manhood, 
was handsomely dressed in European fashion to 
receive his Indian friends. The long coat with its 
rows of shining buttons and lace ruffles falling from 
the wrists fitted smoothly over his tall, well-built 
frame and half covered the slashed knee breeches. 
He wore, according to the custom of the time, a long 
curled wig on which rested a plain beaver hat. As 
he stood there calm and dignified, as became a great 
leader, surrounded by a few of his closest friends, 
among whom was Colonel Markham, already known 
to most of the Indians, the kindness and benevolence 
that shone in his dark eyes could not but win the 
confidence of these simple children of the forest. 

After the pipe of peace had been passed around 
the circle, Tamemund arose and placed on his head 
a sort of crown, or wreath, to which was attached a 
small horn. This was to signify that the spot as well 
as the company was now consecrated, so to speak, 

[85] 



WILLIAM PENN 



and the conference could proceed. He then seated 
himself again, surrounded by the oldest and most 
renowned chiefs of tribes, the warriors forming a 
semi-circle behind them, while the youths who had 
not yet attained the dignity of braves ranged them- 
selves in the background. Tamemund now an- 
nounced that his children were ready to listen to the 
great Onas. 

Slowly and with dignity Penn arose in answer to 
this summons, and after letting his keen glance travel 
lightly over the assembled group, waiting silent and 
motionless for his words, he began to speak, using 
the Lenni Lennapee dialect, with which he was most 
familiar, and preserving as far as possible the figura- 
tive language of the Indians. The Great Spirit, so 
he declared, who made all men and to whom all good 
men return after death, who reads all hearts, knew 
that he and his children meant well by their red 
brothers and sincerely wished to live in peace and 
concord with them and to be their friends and to 
help them in every way possible. This too was the 
will of the Great Spirit, that all his people should be 
as one family, bearing one another's burdens and 
sharing one another's sorrows. Thus would he and 
his chi^ldren treat their Indian brothers; musket 
and sword should be discarded and they should live 
together friendly and loyally. In return they hoped 
for the same pledge from the redmen, in whose jus- 
tice and honesty they had the firmest trust. 

After these introductory words, which were re- 

[86] 



THE INDIAN CONFERENCE 

ceived with repeated signs of approval from his 
audience, Penn read aloud the treaty of peace, drawn 
up by himself, and explained its various points more 
in detail. It stipulated that everything should be 
free, alike to the palefaces and their red brothers, 
and the doors of the one be ever open to the other, 
that the children of Onas would listen to no false 
tales against their brothers, who on their part must 
believe no evil of the palefaces, but each must agree 
to report to the other anything that should come to 
his knowledge which might prove harmful to him. 
Should any one suffer a real injury he must not take 
vengeance himself, but lay the matter before his 
chief or Onas, when sentence should be passed by 
the judgment of twelve just men; after this the in- 
jury must be forgotten as if it had never occurred. 
Lastly, this treaty of friendship should be handed 
down to their children and be kept sacred so long 
as water flowed in the rivers or the sun, moon, and 
stars shone in the heavens. 

Penn then placed the written treaty on the 
ground between himself and the Indian chiefs, who 
retired to hold a brief consultation, after which 
Tamemund answered for his companions that they 
were satisfied with the treaty and would keep it in 
the letter and in the spirit. This was all. No oaths 
were taken, no seal set; the simple word of both was 
sufficient. It has been said of this treaty made by 
Penn with the Indians, in contrast to the many 
signed and sealed between Christian peoples only 

[87] 



WILLIAM PENN 



to be broken on the slightest provocation, that it 
stands alone as the only treaty never sworn to and 
never broken. While the other settlers in the New 
World were perpetually at warfare with the Indians, 
and many were slain by them in the most cruel 
manner, there was never a drop of blood shed in this 
manner in the Quaker colony. The memory of 
Penn, the great Onas, was cherished by the natives 
long after he had left America and even after his 
death, and none of his children ever lacked shelter 
and hospitality from them. Nor have his country- 
men forgotten the service rendered to them by this 
treaty with the Indians. When in 1810 the great 
elm under which it was concluded was blown down 
in a terrific storm, Penn's descendants in England 
were sent a block of wood from this famous tree, 
which, according to its rings, had attained an age 
of nearly three hundred years and the enormous cir- 
cumference of twenty-four feet. On the spot where 
it had stood a simple monument of granite was 
afterward placed in memory of that invaluable 
covenant to which Pennsylvania was so largely in- 
debted for its quick and prosperous development. 

The original constitution drawn up by Penn prov- 
ing in some respects no longer adapted to existing 
conditions in the colony, it was subjected to some 
changes, though the fundamental principles were re- 
tained unaltered. The government was now placed 
entirely in the hands of the people, to be exercised 
through their deputies, and a council also chosen by 

[88] 



THE INDIAN CONFERENCE 

them, Penn resigning all share in the administration. 
"My aim," he wrote one of his friends, "is to leave 
no power to my successors by which any single 
individual may work harm to or interfere with the 
welfare of the whole country." How much this was 
appreciated is shown by the passage of a resolution 
by the government to impose a tax on certain articles 
for Penn's benefit. He refused to accept it, however, 
although he might have done so with a clear con- 
science, as it was well known that he had spent over 
twenty thousand pounds at various times in paying 
the Indians for the land they had given up, but in 
which they still retained the right to hunt and fish. 
On the thirtieth of March, 1683, the newly revised 
constitution was accepted, signed by Penn, and then 
submitted to the English government for approval. 
At this time Penn was much interested in the 
progress of a house which was being built for him 
under Markham's supervision at a place afterward 
known as Pennsburg, which was to be his family 
mansion when he brought his wife and children out 
from England. Anxious as he was, however, that 
all about it should be according to his wishes, the 
troublesome boundary dispute called him away to 
Newcastle, where it was hoped the matter might be 
finally settled. But no agreement was reached and 
Lord Baltimore soon afterward sailed for England to 
lay his claims before the King. Reluctant as he was 
to leave America, and necessary as his presence was 
there at that time, Penn realized, therefore, that in 

[89] 



WILLIAM PENN 



order to protect his own rights he would be forced 
to follow the same course and carry his case to 
England likewise. This decision was hastened by 
the arrival of letters from home informing him not 
only of the dangerous illness of his wife, but also of 
the outbreak of fresh persecutions against all dissent- 
ers, and especially the Quakers. The Friends wrote 
urging his return and beseeching him to use his in- 
fluence at court once more in their favor, as he had 
so often done in the past. Moreover, his enemies 
had circulated various calumnies against him which 
could only be refuted by himself in person. 

There seemed no choice left him. He must put 
the Atlantic Ocean between him and his province, 
for which he had labored so zealously and so success- 
fully for more than a year and a half. But before 
he sailed he once more summoned the Indian chiefs 
to bid them farewell and urge them even more 
strongly than before to keep faith with him and 
observe their treaty with his "children." During 
his absence the business of government was entrusted 
to a few chosen citizens on whom he could depend 
to carry out his ideas and principles. How hard it 
was for him to leave in spite of his anxiety to be at 
the bedside of his sick wife, and how much at heart 
he had the welfare of his province, is shown by the 
fact that even after he had boarded the ship he took 
time before it sailed to write a parting letter of in- 
structions to his deputies, urging them to maintain 
the peace he had striven so hard to establish and 

[90] 



THE INDIAN CONFERENCE 

invoking the blessing of God on the new settle- 
ment. 

The return voyage was a more prosperous one 
than the last, and in June, 1684, Penn landed safely 
on his native shores again. The anxiety he had 
suffered during the voyage as to his wife's illness 
fortunately proved groundless, for he found her 
quite restored to health, thus leaving nothing to 
mar the joy of reunion with his family. He did not 
long enjoy this happiness, however, for his first care 
was to secure some settlement of his dispute with 
Lord Baltimore. He hastened to London, therefore, 
after a few days, to present himself at court, where 
he was most graciously received both by the King 
and the Duke of York, who assured him that the 
matter should be promptly adjusted in all fairness. 
The King falling ill soon after this, however, the 
subject was again deferred and Lord Baltimore deter- 
mined to take advantage of the situation by possess- 
ing himself of the disputed territory. He sent word, 
therefore, to his agents in America to seize it by 
force, ejecting all settlers who refused to acknowledge 
his sovereignty or to pay the tax imposed by him. 
Nothing but the threat made by the government of 
Pennsylvania of an immediate complaint to the King 
prevented the execution of this order, the result of 
which interference was that in addition to the mali- 
cious charges already heaped upon Penn by his 
enemies it was said that this apostle of peace had 
done his best to kindle a civil war in America. 

[91] 



WILLIAM PENN 



On the sixth of February, 1685, King Charles the 
Second died and his brother the Duke of York suc- 
ceeded to the throne as James the Second. The time 
now seemed ripe for Penn to pave the way for the 
estabhshment in England of that liberty of conscience 
for which he had already made so many sacrifices 
and secured so successful a home across the sea. 
The new King had always been opposed to the 
religious persecutions that had existed during his 
brother's reign and Penn looked with confidence for 
some manifestation of these sentiments now that 
James was on the throne. Nor was he disappointed. 
In response to a petition addressed to the new sov- 
ereign by Penn, an order was immediately issued 
suspending all penalties against religious offenders 
and releasing those who were imprisoned for such 
reasons, among whom were more than twelve hundred 
Quakers alone. But the mere exercise of the royal 
right of pardon by no means satisfied Penn. His 
aim was to secure universal liberty of conscience in 
England by the passage of a law which should guar- 
antee this, and through the favor he enjoyed with the 
King he still hoped to bring it about. In order to 
be near at hand, therefore, he removed his residence 
from Worminghurst to London, that he might lose 
no opportunity of exerting his influence with James, 
nor did the fact of his being accused of having secretly 
joined the Catholic religion to please the King deter 
him in the least, accustomed as he was to all sorts of 
calumny. 

[92] 



THE INDIAN CONFERENCE 

The political intrigues in which James the Second 
was continually involved, and which finally led to 
another revolution, Penn was careful to avoid, and he 
would gladly have exchanged the turmoil of court life 
for his peaceful transatlantic colony had not a feeling 
of duty to the cause he had undertaken urged him 
to remain where he might be of some use. He spent 
much time at court and was held in high regard by 
the King, who permitted him to say many things 
that no other could have ventured with impunity. 
This was well known and Penn's house was constantly 
besieged with petitioners seeking to profit by his 
influence with the King. Yet firm as was Penn's 
confidence in James' good faith, he could not blind 
himself to the ever-increasing distrust and dissatis- 
faction with which his subjects regarded him. Not 
only did he openly practise the rites of his religion, 
having a magnificent chapel built near the palace 
for the observance of Catholic worship, but he also 
instituted several monastic orders, while the Jesuits 
were permitted such influence at court that it was 
generally feared an attempt would be made to intro- 
duce that religion as the state form of worship. 
This suspicion was still further increased when in 
March, 1687, the King summarily abolished all penal 
laws against dissenters, including the so-called Test 
Act, which permitted none but members of the 
established church to hold public ofiice of any kind. 
As this act had been originally framed for the express 
purpose of excluding Catholics from the govern- 

[93] 



WILLIAM PENN 



ment, its abolition naturally was regarded with 
alarm. 

Rejoiced as Penn was at the repeal of the hated 
laws against dissenters, he felt it his duty to warn 
the King against showing such open favor toward 
Catholicism, urging him at the same time to secure 
the authority of Parliament for these reforms. But 
James heeded neither the warning nor the appeal 
and insisted on the exercise of absolute power without 
reference to Parliament. Fearing lest the abolition 
of some of the fundamental national laws might 
follow in the same arbitrary manner, a storm of pro- 
test followed and a general revolt seemed imminent. 
Many eyes had already been turned toward the 
King's son-in-law. Prince William of Orange, as a 
possible successor to the English throne, and at this 
crisis the Prince, being even then in communication 
with the malcontents in England, was approached 
with offers as to the dethronement of James, offers 
which he had no scruples in accepting. 

On the fifth of November, 1688, he accordingly 
landed on the English coast with a well-armed force 
and was hailed with general acclamations, the troops 
hastily collected by the King for his own defence also 
deserting to his standard. On hearing this news 
James fled from London, thinking to escape to France, 
but being discovered on his way to the coast he was 
advised by his friends to return to London. At 
the approach of the Prince of Orange, however, he 
again fled, and this time succeeded in reaching the 

[94] 



THE INDIAN CONFERENCE 

shores of France in safety, where he was willingly 
given shelter by his friend Louis the Fourteenth. 

On the twenty-second of January, 1689, the throne 
of England was declared vacant by Parliament and 
the Prince of Orange proclaimed King, as William the 
Third, on subscribing to a law regulating the preroga- 
tives of the crown as well as the State and depriving 
the sovereign of those rights which James had so arbi- 
trarily exercised of abolishing laws on his own abso- 
lute authority or of interfering with their execution. 



[95] 



Chapter Fill 

Penn Tried for Treason and Acquitted — Withdrawal of 
Penn's Charter — Death of his Wife and Son — Second 
Marriage — Journey to America — Penn's Home — 
Attempts to Correct Abuses — Returns to England and 
Encounters Fresh Dangers — Penn in the Debtors^ 
Prison — Ingratitude of the Colonists 

THE flight of King James was the signal for the 
departure of his friends and favorites also, 
but Penn refused to leave the country in 
spite of urgent entreaties from all sides to do 
so. Calm in the consciousness that he had done noth- 
ing which was not for the honor and welfare of Eng- 
land, he persisted in this determination even when 
the houses of many who were supposed to favor the 
fugitive King were burned by the populace. When 
called upon by the council, which had assumed the 
reins of government, to explain his relations with 
James, he declared simply that his life had been 
devoted to the service of his country and the Prot- 
estant religion, that the King had been his father's 
friend and his own guardian, and that while he had 
always shown him the respect and obedience due 
from a subject, he had done nothing and should do 
nothing inconsistent with his duty to God and his 
country. 

[96] 



PENN TRIED FOR TREASON 

On this frank declaration he was allowed to go free, 
after giving a bond of six thousand pounds, until 
his public trial should take place, at which he was 
later acquitted. In spite of this, however, he was 
twice again tried for treason, in one case even being 
accused of complicity in a plot to restore James the 
Second to the throne, but his innocence was so clearly 
proved and his frank simplicity made so favorable 
an impression on his judges and on the King as well, 
that in both cases he was fully exonerated and dis- 
charged from custody. Owing to his being still 
under suspicion, however, and secretly watched, he 
was doubtless warned to remain out of sight for a 
time, for except for some works of his which were 
published at this period, even his friends saw nothing 
of him for a space of two years. The passage of a 
law framed by the new King acknowledging the 
existence of dissenters and forbidding their persecu- 
tion in future rejoiced Penn greatly, even though the 
Test Act still remained in force and only members 
of the established church could enjoy the full rights 
of citizenship. But other matters had arisen in the 
meantime that caused him great uneasiness. 

War between France and England again seemed 
inevitable, in which case the North American States 
would be placed in a position of great danger, the 
French having established such friendly relations 
with the Indians that an alliance between them must 
be expected. Under these circumstances it seemed 
absolutely necessary for Penn to carry out the plan 

[97] 



WILLIAM PENN 



he had long had in mind of returning to Pennsylvania 
to protect the rights he had earned by such labor 
and sacrifice. An unforeseen event, however, inter- 
fered for a time with this intention, for on the tenth 
of March, 1692, a royal decree was issued placing 
both Pennsylvania and New Jersey under the mili- 
tary command of a Colonel Fletcher, who was to de- 
fend them against the hostile tribes of Indians already 
on the war-path. It came about in this way. The 
North American provinces, already grown or growing 
into States, having been made practically independent 
either by gift or purchase during the preceding 
reigns. King William determined to unite them 
again with the English crown and thereby provide 
himself with part of the force he needed for the war 
with France. As the Quakers of Pennsylvania had 
shown no great haste to offer allegiance to the new 
sovereign, Penn's enemies had taken advantage of 
this fact to urge the withdrawal of his charter, and 
while Penn himself had no doubt that this arbitrary 
measure would be revoked in the course of time, and 
felt convinced that the money he had spent in pur- 
chasing the land from the Indians, almost his entire 
fortune, must constitute an indubitable claim to the 
province, still the blow was a hard one and he found 
himself in a by no means encouraging situation. 
Added to this were family cares and anxieties, both 
his wife and eldest son being seriously ill at the time. 
Amid these troubles he was only sustained by his 
faith in God and in the ultimate triumph of right, 

[98 1 



PENN TRIED FOR TREASON 

a faith which was justified after some delay by the 
restoration to him of his American province, the 
King, however, reserving the right to defend it until 
the end of the war, a condition to which Penn, being 
a Quaker, could conscientiously make no objection. 

Penn's greatest anxiety now was to return to 
America, but he was still detained in England by 
the condition of his oldest son, who had developed 
consumption. Shortly before this he had experi- 
enced the bitter sorrow of losing Guli, his beloved 
wife, who for twenty-one years had been the joy of 
his life. Being unable consequently to leave England 
he arranged by permission of the government to 
send a few trustworthy representatives to Pennsyl- 
vania to protect his rights while he remained to care 
for his sick son. After an illness of two years 
Springett died, February lo, 1696, and the heart- 
broken father exclaimed: "I have lost in him all 
that a father can lose in a son." 

Penn was now left in sole care of his two re- 
maining children, Letty and William, the latter of 
whom, resembling his grandfather more than his 
father in character, needed judicious control. It 
was this fact chiefly that induced Penn, then nearly 
fifty years old, to marry again. At the beginning 
of the year 1696 he was united to Hannah Callowhill 
of Bristol, a sensible, pious woman, who presented 
him with six children and outlived him several 
years. Still Penn found himself unable to go back 
to Pennsylvania, which he had not seen for thirteen 

[99] 



WILLIAM PENN 



years. For neither his wife nor his daughter Letty, 
now grown to womanhood, could make up their minds 
to follow him to America and leave their native land, 
perhaps forever. As little would his son William 
listen even to the idea of exchanging the pleasures he 
enjoyed at home for the monotony of life in Penn- 
sylvania. 

By the year 1699, however, the English govern- 
ment had received so many complaints of mismanage- 
ment on the part of Markham and Penn's other 
representatives there that Penn, fearing he might 
again be in danger of losing his province, decided to 
make the move to America at any cost, especially 
as the French war had been brought to a close by 
the Peace of Ryswick and the usual peaceful condi- 
tions might be expected again to exist in Pennsyl- 
vania. Under these circumstances his wife and 
daughter abandoned their opposition to the plan, 
but young William still refusing to leave England, 
the family were forced to sail without him. Owing 
to contrary winds, the passage this time was a very 
long one, lasting fully three months, a fortunate 
occurrence as it proved, notwithstanding general 
complaints, for they thereby escaped an epidemic of 
some malignant fever which had caused great loss 
of life in Philadelphia. 

Penn's return to his province after an absence of 
fifteen years was hailed with universal rejoicing, and 
now that he had brought his family with him it was 
hoped he would remain to watch over the people 

[100] 



PENN TRIED FOR TREASON 

who had so long been deprived of his fatherly care. 
It must indeed have been a temptation to Penn 
to settle down here in peace for the rest of his 
days, for his Pennsburg had now grown into a most 
beautiful estate. The land chosen for it by himself 
and Markham was superbly situated and protected 
against any kind of attack by the Delaware River, 
which almost entirely surrounded it, affording at 
the same time a delicious coolness that made it 
comfortable even in the intense heat of summer. 
The house, which was built overlooking the river, was 
sixty feet in length by forty in depth and was sur- 
rounded with magnificent gardens, which were Penn's 
special delight. Beyond these stretched a fine park, 
left for the most part in its natural wildness and 
filled with huge trees whose interlacing branches 
formed a canopy overhead, while here and there were 
artfully planned nooks and bits of fine landscape 
gardening. The lower story of the stately mansion 
was almost entirely taken up by a great hall capable 
of accommodating the largest assemblies, while the 
upper contained the living rooms, the windows of 
which commanded a charming view across the river 
to the wooded shores of New Jersey. The extensive 
outbuildings included a fine stable, for Penn was a 
great lover of horses, and on the water before the 
house was moored a charming pleasure yacht for 
excursions on the river. Penn's wife and daughter 
were equally pleased with this delightful home, and 
as the master of the house was fond of having guests 

[lOl] 



WILLIAM PENN 



and willingly permitted all innocent forms of amuse- 
ment, they found little reason to regret the change 
to which they had found it so hard to reconcile 
themselves. 

Penn himself, however, had little time to devote 
to pleasure, for much and difficult work awaited 
him. First of all it was necessary to rectify the evils 
which had given rise to so much complaint, chief 
of which was the introduction of contraband trade. 
He soon found that by no means all the inhabitants 
of his colony shared his disinterestedness or his 
loftiness of purpose. He met with especial opposi- 
tion in his efforts to better the condition of the negro 
slaves. This traffic in human beings had continued 
to flourish ever since his first visit to America, for 
at that time its infamy was not recognized. The 
blacks were looked upon as creatures little above 
the brutes, to buy and sell whom was perfectly legiti- 
mate. In the first constitution drawn up by him, 
Penn had inserted an article stipulating that negro 
servants should be freed after fourteen years of 
service, provided they gave their former masters 
two-thirds of all they produced from the land assigned 
to them, failing which they were to return to servi- 
tude. This did not prevent the continuation of 
slavery, however, the legality or illegality of which 
being regarded as a question which no reasonable 
man need trouble himself about. The German 
settlers from the Rhine Palatinate were the only 
ones to protest against it, and they indeed left no 

[ I02 ] 



PENN TRIED FOR TREASON 



stone unturned to secure support and recognition 
for their cause. Penn's attempts to introduce a law 
for the benefit of the negroes therefore met with 
such strong opposition from the assembly that^ he 
was forced to abandon his benevolent plans until a 
more favorable opportunity should occur. He kept 
no slaves himself, preferring to hire those of his 
neighbors when he needed their services. 

The Indians were overjoyed at the return of the 
great Onas, who immediately renewed the old friendly 
relations with them. They had faithfully observed 
the treaty concluded in 1682 and had fared so 
well in consequence that other tribes which had 
then held aloof were now eager to join the alliance, 
to which Penn gladly agreed, as it would add in no 
small degree to the safety of his province. After 
this ceremony had been performed in the manner 
already described, Penn entertained his new allies 
in the great hall of his mansion, while they returned 
the hospitality by performing some of their wild 
dances upon the lawn for their host and his family. 

Penn continued to labor unceasingly for the wel- 
fare not only of his own, but also of the neighboring 
provinces for two years, when once more he was 
interrupted by the arrival of bad news from England. 
This was the introduction of a bill into Parliament 
bringing all proprietary governments under the con- 
trol of the crown, and it was with difficulty that 
Penn's friends succeeded in having the^ hearing 
deferred until he could return from America. His 

[103] 



WILLIAM PENN 



presence in England therefore seemed indispensable 
at this juncture and the assembly of Pennsylvania 
urged him to lose no time. All necessary measures 
of government were hastily arranged and some 
alterations made in the constitution, but already it 
had become painfully evident that the representa- 
tives of the people were seeking their own advantage 
only and paying little heed to the interests of the 
man to whom they owed so much. They even 
refused to furnish the means for his journey to 
England, though it was undertaken entirely at their 
behest and in their interest, and Penn was forced to 
depend on raising the necessary money during his 
stay in London by the sale of some of his lands. 

His wife and daughter were glad enough to return 
to England. The novelty and excitement of the 
new life had worn away by this time and they has- 
tened as much as possible the preparations for 
departure. The Indians, on the contrary, were bit- 
terly disappointed when they heard that the great 
Onas was to leave them again so soon. They came 
from near and far to bid him farewell and were only 
consoled by the assurance that during his absence 
the same justice and friendship should be shown 
them, to insure which Penn made both the coun- 
cil and his deputy. Colonel Hamilton, personally 
responsible. As a parting gift he presented the city 
of Philadelphia with a deed of grant for the land on 
which it stood, and after promising to send his son 
out at once, that he might become familiar with the 

[ 104 ] 



PENN TRIED FOR TREASON 

nature and needs of the country over which he might 
one day claim ownership, Penn left the shores of 
America, never to return. 

On his arrival in England, toward the end of 1701, 
he found the situation by no means so bad as he had 
feared. It had been merely a plot on the part of his 
enemies to deprive him of his ownership of Pennsyl- 
vania without any indemnification. Upon Penn's 
proving that he had relinquished a claim on ten 
thousand pounds against the crown in exchange 
for his patent, which document had been drawn up 
in the proper legal form; that besides this he had 
acquired undisputed possession of the land by sub- 
sequent purchase from the Indians; and finally, that 
the interest on that ten thousand pounds had by 
this time increased it to more than double that 
sum, which must lawfully be paid to him if he were 
deprived of his province, even King William was 
forced to recognize the justice of his cause and the pro- 
posed bill was abandoned, never to be revived again. 

Penn had not neglected to fulfil his promise to the 
Pennsylvanians and immediately after his arrival 
had ordered his son to leave as soon as possible for 
Philadelphia; but it was with great reluctance that 
he did so, for during his father's absence the pleasure- 
loving youth had abandoned himself to every form 
of dissipation, to the great detriment not only of his 
health, but of his pocket. To send him out to 
America alone without restraint or guardianship of 
any kind meant merely a continuation of his dis- 

[105] 



WILLIAM PENN 



solute career, with perhaps ruin and disgrace to the 
honorable name he bore. Nor was the young man 
any better pleased with the idea, and it was not 
till his father had opened his eyes to the seriousness 
of the situation and agreed to pay his debts that he 
yielded and promised to go without further protest. 
Before he sailed Penn wrote to some of the Friends 
in Philadelphia begging them to watch over his son 
with fatherly care and solicitude. All seemed to 
go well at first with young William. He troubled 
himself little, to be sure, as to the province or its 
affairs, preferring rather to spend his time in hunting 
and fishing; but the evil spirit in him soon broke out 
afresh, and he plunged once more into a life of wild 
excess, defying all the laws of the country, and after 
he had succeeded in squandering huge sums of money 
and making himself thoroughly detested, he went 
back to England, unbidden and unregretted. 

The payment of these new debts contracted by 
his son caused Penn great financial embarrassment, 
which was still further increased by the unexpected 
and extortionate demands of a creditor. This was 
the successor of his former advocate and man of 
business, who at the time of Penn's first journey to 
America had advanced him the sum of twenty-eight 
hundred pounds in exchange for which and ostensibly 
as a mere matter of form he had induced his unsus- 
pecting client to sign a bond pledging the whole 
province of Pennsylvania as security. Now without 
any warning an account of fourteen thousand pounds 

[io6] 



PENN TRIED FOR TREASON 

was sent in to Penn with the threat that an attach- 
ment would be served if this sum were not imme- 
diately., paid. After investigating this fraudulent 
account, he declared himself willing to settle for 
some four thousand pounds, all to which the cred- 
itor was justly entitled. This the latter refused to 
accept, however, and the owner of Pennsylvania 
was forced to go to a debtors' prison as the assembly 
of that colony refused to make him any advances or 
even pay the revenues owing to him. In this emer- 
gency Penn offered for the sum of twenty thousand 
pounds to sell his whole province to Queen Anne, 
who, as the second daughter of the dethroned King 
James the Second, had succeeded to the throne on the 
death of William the Third, in 1702. She refused to 
take it, however, and at length he managed by great 
effort to raise between seven and eight thousand 
pounds, with which his false creditor finally agreed 
to content himself, Penn thereby procuring release. 

The long confinement had so seriously affected 
Penn's health that he now decided to leave London 
and moved with his family to Brentford, some eight 
miles distant, where he devoted himself entirely to 
his former vocation of preaching the gospel through- 
out the country and conducting meetings for his 
Quaker brethren. The increasing infirmities of age, 
however, soon put an end to these journeyings, 
Penn having now reached the age of sixty-five, and 
in 1710, therefore, he retired to Rushcombe in Buck- 
inghamshire, where he remained until his death. 

[107] 



WILLIAM PENN 



From there he addressed a communication to the 
settlers in Pennsylvania, reproaching them for the 
ingratitude with which they had rewarded his labors 
and sacrifices in their behalf. His last journey to 
England had been taken solely in their interests to 
prevent the absorption of that province by the crown, 
in which case their existing constitution would have 
been abolished. He had made every effort to accom- 
plish this purpose, in spite of their indifference, with 
the result that he had become impoverished while 
they had grown rich; while they, thanks to his fore- 
sight and perseverance, were in possession of an 
empire, liberty, and power, and he, for their sake 
and because of their avarice, had been forced to 
languish in a debtors' prison. He was forced to con- 
clude, therefore, that it was their wish to sever the 
old relations hitherto existing between them and 
himself, in which case, if they would signify their 
desire by the choice of a successor, he would then 
know how to act. 

This letter did not fail to impress the conscience- 
stricken Pennsylvanians. At the popular election 
which shortly followed a new assembly was chosen 
in place of the one that had proved so ungrateful to 
their benefactor, and it was no small consolation to 
Penn, broken as he was by trouble and ill health, that 
this new assembly unanimously agreed on the passage 
of resolutions that filled him with hope for the future 
of the province. 



[io8] 



Chapter IX 

Death of his Dissolute Son William — Penn^s Last Illness 
and Mental Decline — His Death and Will 

THE younger William Penn meanwhile had 
gone from bad to worse, to the bitter dis- 
appointment of his father, who after the un- 
timely death of his first-born had placed all 
his hopes on this unworthy son. After having entirely 
estranged his family by his excesses, he entered the 
army in defiance of his father's principles, but re- 
signed soon after when an opening offered for election 
to Parliament. Failing to accomplish this, however, 
he abandoned his wife and children and went to the 
continent, where he led a life of riotous adventure 
in the various capitals till his death in 1720. 

It may have been the arrival of some distressing 
news about this degenerate son that led to the apo- 
plectic stroke with which Penn was seized early in the 
year 171 2 and which in his feeble state of health was 
a serious matter, although he rallied for a time suffi- 
ciently to be able to occupy himself with colonial 
affairs. The question of slavery was much on his 
mind. He had become more and more convinced 
of its inhumanity and sinfulness and had great 
hopes of securing its abolition, as the untiring efforts 
of the German settlers had secured the passage of 

[109] 



WILLIAM PENN 



a law forbidding the importation of any more 
slaves. 

This first stroke, however, was soon followed by 
two more which left him a wreck physically and 
mentally. The devoted care of his wife and children 
helped to avert any immediate danger to his life, 
but the brilliant mind was hopelessly shattered. He 
became like a child, serene and peaceful fortunately, 
playing about the house or garden most of the time 
with his own young children and those of his son, 
whom with their deserted mother he had taken into 
his own home at Rushcombe. Occasionally there 
would be lucid moments when he was able to converse 
intelligently, and then the placid smile would vanish 
from his lips at the sight of his wife's care-worn face 
and the realization of the burdens she had to bear 
not only in the management of family affairs, but 
also to keep up the extensive correspondence re- 
quired by colonial matters. 

In this condition Penn lived on for five long years, 
sometimes able to recognize his old friends when 
they came to see him and even exchange a few in- 
telligible words with them, but toward the end the 
power both of speech and memory failed him. On 
the thirtieth of May, 171 8, he passed away quietly 
and peacefully at the age of seventy-four, after a life 
of ceaseless devotion to the service of God and the 
welfare of humanity. 

In a will made while still in full possession of his 
mental faculties, Penn left the following directions: 

[no] 



DEATH OF HIS SON 



His son William, having already squandered the 
money left him by his deceased mother as her family 
inheritance, was debarred from any share in the 
estate, the English property, yielding at that time 
an annual revenue of some fifteen hundred pounds, 
passing to his children instead. To each of the 
grandchildren, as well as his daughter Letty, he 
bequeathed ten thousand acres of the best land still 
unsold in Pennsylvania, and after disposing of enough 
more of this land to pay the expenses of his burial, 
the remainder was to be divided among his five 
children by his second wife, Hannah Callowhill, 
who was made executor with an annuity of three 
hundred pounds. The management of his colonial 
affairs he entrusted to his two friends the Earls of 
Oxford and Pawlett, with orders to dispose of his 
right of possession on the most favorable terms 
possible, either to the English crown or elsewhere, 
the proceeds to be invested for the benefit of these 
children. 

I Penn had arranged his worldly affairs with his 
usual wisdom and foresight. While it might appear 
by the terms of the will that he had shown a prefer- 
ence for his son William's children by leaving them 
the English property with its assured returns, his 
own receiving only the doubtful American possessions 
which of late had yielded a revenue of little more 
than five hundred pounds a year, yet as a matter of 
fact it was quite the reverse; for during the twenty 
years of peace and prosperity that followed the 

[III] 



WILLIAM PENN 



French and Indian war the value of the colonial 
property increased enormously. In 1797 the gov- 
ernment of Pennsylvania paid the descendants of 
William Penn the sum of one hundred and thirty 
thousand pounds for their rights of ownership, 
exclusive of all personal properties, as well as back- 
standing payments and rents due from the sale of 
lands left them by the founder of the State; while 
in England they also received the additional sum of 
five hundred thousand pounds voted by Parliament 
as indemnity for the losses suffered by him. 

The body of William Penn was laid to rest beside 
those of his first wife and their eldest son in the quiet 
churchyard of the village of Jordan in Buckingham- 
shire. Hundreds came from far and near to pay 
their last respects to the noble Quaker, and it needed 
not the eulogies pronounced over his grave to pro- 
claim to the world that a great and good man had 
passed away. 



[112] 



;appeni3i;e 



The following is a chronological statement of the more 
Important events in William Penn's life: 

1644 Birth 

1658 Death of Oliver Cromwell 

1659 Penn enters Oxford 

1660 Expulsion from Oxford 
1660 Visits Germany 

1664 War between England and Holland 

1665 Penn in the naval service 

1667 Adopts the Quaker faith 

1668 Begins preaching 
1670 Penn's arrest 

1672 Marriage 

1673 Fresh Quaker persecutions 
1677 Visits Holland 

168 1 Royal cession of land to Penn 

1682 Penn goes to America 
1682 Founding of Philadelphia 

1682 Treaty made with the Indians 

1683 The new constitution accepted 

1684 Penn returns to England 

1685 Death of Charles the Second 
1688 Dethronement of James 

[113] 



APPENDIX 



1696 Second marriage 

1699 Penn returns to America 

1701 Penn goes back to England 

1702 Penn imprisoned for debt 
17 10 Penn retires to private life 
171 8 Death of William Penn 



[114] 



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